


The Once and Future King

by LaBelleetlaloup



Series: The Once and Future King [1]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Breakfast in Bed, Court Politics, Female Merlin, Gen, Love Potion/Spell, Mistaken for Being in a Relationship, Near Death Experiences, POV Arthur, POV Merlin, Pining, Season/Series 01, Sharing a Bed, The Old Religion, Tournaments, as in people almost die in chapter 5 and 11 and 13 and 14, that's in chapter 8
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-05
Updated: 2015-05-05
Packaged: 2018-03-28 19:16:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 57,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3866638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LaBelleetlaloup/pseuds/LaBelleetlaloup
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A reboot of BBC's Merlin with a female Merlin covering the events of Season 1. Also, Merlin has a little better knowledge of and background in magic. Plus, Arthur is not quite so oblivious.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Beginning

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I have already written all the chapters for this fic, but I am not done writing the series. To give myself some cushion, I'm going to post a chapter at a time, a few times a week. Ideally, this will be Monday, Wednesday, Friday. If I don't, it's because I've been extremely busy or forgot. Terribly sorry in advance.
> 
> Edit: I have done math. I have plenty enough already done so I will be posting a chapter a day Monday through Friday. Yay!

Merlin’s mother, for some reason unknown to Merlin, did not trust their neighbors. She insisted that Merlin pretend not to have magic, as though everyone in the village did not already know, had not already known since before she could talk. Merlin could understand her mother not wanting the information to get to King Cenred, magic may be accepted but a peasant with so much power could easily get accused of treason, but Ealdor was in Kearia’s territory. Technically it was part and parcel of Essetir, subject to King Cenred’s rule, but Kearia was the Lady of the area and she was a sorceress, most likely a witch, and far older than King Cenred and she ruled her land with little interference from the King. Merlin had always doubted that she would ever be in any real danger should her admittedly extensive abilities come to King Cenred’s attention. She was strong enough to get away and Kearia would probably offer her protection.

But, Merlin’s mother did not trust their neighbors. As though Ealdor was not named for the sacred spring not a full hour’s walk from the village. As though there were not Druids in the village for nearly every feast day and often through the winter. But it was not Merlin’s place to question her mother and she had always known that her mother would eventually send her away to try her luck in the anonymity of a city. Merlin and Will had decided that since Merlin was a pretty girl and would have to travel long roads on her own, that she would have to be able to pass for a boy. As with all things, the spells were the easiest part for Merlin. But Will and Merlin were already inseparable and him teaching her to talk and walk like a boy did not arouse her mother’s suspicions.

Then her mother told her that she would be going to Camelot, to the castle, the heart of the broken kingdom of Albion which had banned magic on pain of death, because her mother had a friend there. Merlin was more than a little concerned about the whole scheme, but it could not be so bad, could it? She had good control over her power, she was unlikely to give herself away, and only those who had magic themselves could sense it in others and they would not be handing her over to the King of Camelot, since they likely had more sense than her mother and would be far, far away from the crazy king who had banned magic. Of course, it was also highly improbable that she would ever exchange two words with the King or his son.

Obviously, Merlin had not been prepared for a prince who was a terrible prat and set up his target practice in the market square, looking like a merchant’s son with a head full of his own imagined importance. She spent the first night in Camelot in the dungeon, wondering how in the world she had gotten in so much trouble. Did her pretty face really get her out of so much trouble at home, or was it just that she had not recognized the prince and it was only a single incident and would not become a pattern? She was hoping for the latter. She was not horrifying in appearance as a lad by any means, but she was too tall and awkwardly shaped and her hair stuck out in all directions and her ears were thrice their normal size. Only her lovely eyes had not changed, still a deep, pretty blue. Will had assured her that they were exactly the same, at least. She was ignoring that he also thought her lips were the same and they did not feel the same. Regardless of the cause of her night in the dungeon cell, she had resolved not to interact with the prince any further unless she needed to bow or something. She was going to be Gaius’ assistant after all and surely they would not cross paths very often.

Merlin was not accustomed to being proved wrong so frequently. Of course, nearly the moment she was out of the stocks and cleaned up, she had been sent on another errand and ran into the stupid prince in the marketplace. Was he ever anywhere else? Merlin tried to pretend that she had not even seen him and keep walking, but clearly that was a tactic that only worked for women. The prat prince had baited and goaded her until she turned around and somehow ended up with a mace in her hands. She knew how to use a dagger, any knife really, and her fists, but a mace was not something she had any familiarity with. She used her magic to move everything around them, keeping her from getting her face bashed in, since she had dropped the mace almost immediately. Goddess mercy! And of course, there was Gaius, glaring at her like she had started this. She was an innocent victim here. When the guards grabbed her arms once she’d been knocked on her ass again, she thought she might conveniently forget that magic was banned and throw them into a wall. But then the prince intervened.

“No, let him go,” he said. Merlin missed the rest of his babbling, staring at him in shock. Where was the horrible cruel man who had attacked an unarmed peasant not moments before? “There’s just something about you, Merlin.” Merlin blinked. He had remembered her name? Of course, she was being dragged away by Gaius before she could think to reply and lectured and completely ignored when she insisted that his pratness had started the fight and she had not even had a weapon for most of it. Maybe she could just forge a letter of recommendation from Gaius and hit the road again. Clearly Camelot was not the place for her. King Alined had three Court Sorcerers and the rumors were that fully half his household servants had magic. At least there, she would have her magic and her pretty face to protect her.

The dragon chained below the keep who had apparently been the one to make her fear her own sanity by continuously calling her name did not seem to agree, spouting something that sounded like a prophecy she had heard before. But she could not call to mind exactly which one. All the Druids did not agree, after all, and each band preferred different prophecies and told even the ones they agreed on differently. It would make sense that the dragons would have their own version. That did not mean that the dragon had the right prince, or that she was the person he thought she would be. Prince Prat deserved to have someone take him down a peg or two, and she was only exaggerating a little when she spitefully told the dragon that anyone trying to assassinate the prince would have her full cooperation. She would most likely just ignore that she saw anything strange rather than try to get herself executed for treason.

The next day, Merlin met Gwen’s mistress, the Lady Morgana who was King Uther’s ward. Gaius sent her to deliver a sleeping draught to Morgana and Morgana mistook Merlin for Gwen returning from an errand when she first walked into the room.

“Ah, Gwen, there you are,” Morgana said, standing and walking towards a screen in the room.

“No, my lady,” Merlin answered. “I am Merlin, Gaius’ new assistant. He sent me with your sleeping draught?” Merlin offered the bottle.

“It is a good thing that you spoke up so quickly,” Morgana pretended to whisper. “I am going to have Gwen help me change gowns when she returns.”

“That could have been a very awkward situation for us both,” Merlin agreed. Morgana smiled at him as though pleased with the response.

“Are you Gwen’s new friend? The one who tried to fight Arthur in the marketplace?”

“Uh, yes, my lady,” Merlin admitted reluctantly, “I did not recognize him and thought his behavior needed reproach.” Morgana nodded, staring at her intently. Merlin merely stared back.

“You speak well for a peasant,” she murmured.

“My mother wished me to have some education. She sent me here in hopes Gaius would take me on as an apprentice.”

“I wish you luck in your endeavors,” Morgana replied with a sweet smile. She finally took the bottle of sleeping draught from Merlin.

“I will take my leave,” Merlin murmured. Morgana nodded and waved a hand in dismissal. Merlin turned and left, passing Gwen on the stairs.

“Hello, Merlin!” she greeted.

“Hello, Gwen,” Merlin echoed. “I was just giving Morgana her sleeping draught. Unfortunately Gaius wants me to come straight back and Morgana has need of you, so I cannot stay to chat.”

“Well, I am certain we will meet again soon enough,” Gwen replied. “The castle is not as large as it first seems, given that the inhabitants occupy only two wings and the others are largely unused.”

“Then hopefully I will learn my way around sooner rather than later.”

“Go down the stairs at the other end of the short hall here,” Gwen pointed towards the windows. “You’ll come out into the center courtyard at the bottom.”

“Thank you, Gwen,” Merlin beamed at her before hurrying off. Gaius did get all upset if she got turned around and took too long for the deliveries he sent her on.

After Gaius sent her to give some sort of throat thing to the noblewoman who was supposed to sing for the king that night, Merlin had a second idea for leaving Camelot. She knew why a woman without a child would have corn husk doll lying amongst her things. Lady Helen had magic. Merlin could leave with her retinue and surely Lady Helen would not mind a fellow witch asking for a reference. Of course, Merlin was too flustered to actually say anything to the woman when she suddenly walked back into her chambers, but there would be plenty of time. After all, Gaius had decided that Merlin could follow him to the feast and listen to the Lady Helen sing.

Merlin should have already resigned herself to being wrong. Lady Helen was not a sorceress. The lady who had protested her son’s execution only a few days prior was wearing her face and tried to kill everyone. Almost literally without a single thought, Merlin had registered the dagger, slowed time and dragged the prat prince out of the way.

The King stared at her in awe for a moment before speaking. “You saved my boy's life. A debt must be repaid.” Merlin mumbled something inane. So much for keeping her head down. “Don't be so modest. You shall be rewarded.”

Merlin felt panic well up, “No, honestly, you don't have to, Your Highness.”

“No, absolutely. This merits something quite special,” the king insisted. Merlin dithered some more, but even she knew that you did not argue with a king. “You shall be rewarded a position in the royal household. You shall be Prince Arthur's manservant.” The prince at least exclaimed in horror, no more pleased with the situation than Merlin was. What sort of reward was it to make someone a servant? She thought she had been conceding to some valuable trinket or gold or something, not a second set of responsibilities. What sort of dreadful place was this?


	2. What Does a Manservant Do, Anyway?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those that have not noticed the edit on the previous chapter: I will post one chapter a day Monday through Friday. That should still leave me plenty of cushion. I had not done math yesterday when I was decision making.

The next morning, Merlin woke up and made sure she was clean and neat before following Gaius’ instructions to get to the prince’s chambers. What would her mother think of this? She shook off the thought and knocked on his door. She was a little surprised there weren’t guards on the door. Wasn’t that a thing with royalty? Obviously it was not.

“Come in,” the prince called out. Merlin let herself in. He was up and dressed, sitting at a table with his breakfast before him. “Oh, there you are. I’ll expect you much earlier in the future.” Merlin just blinked at him. “After all, I have lots of responsibilities and you’ll have to bring my breakfast. But you missed that today, so you can start with cleaning my chambers and washing my clothes and…” His mouth was still moving but Merlin really was not hearing anything that came out of it. She was officially here to be Gaius’ apprentice. How did she end up with all these chores? “…And muck out my stables.” The prince nodded to punctuate his list. Merlin gawked some more. Do what to his stables? Shouldn’t that be the stable boy’s problem? Who had done all of this yesterday? Someone must have done. Merlin had been upset enough when she had thought she was joining a group of servants that served the prince. Oh no, had someone been sacked to put her in this position?

“Don’t you have other servants as well?” Merlin asked. The prince blinked, as though startled to hear her speak.

“Of course, I have use of any servant in the castle, but you are my only personal servant. I’m a very exacting master and I had to let my last manservant go about a fortnight ago. You should probably start on your chores if you want to finish them on time.” He waved a hand in dismissal. Merlin sighed. Okay, clean chambers, laundry, stables… um, he’d said something about polishing? Armor, probably, maybe the sword, too? But shouldn’t he have a squire? Oh well. Merlin crossed the room, getting a feel for the layout of the chambers. Laundry she could do. She had been doing it since she was old enough not to wash downstream, after all, and thankfully, Gaius had already showed her where the laundry was supposed to be done because of her stint in the stocks. Merlin tidied up as she gathered what appeared to be dirty laundry scattered across the floor, putting things in what seemed to be their places.

“Should I just put the bedclothes to rights or do they need washing, too?”

Arthur paused, still appearing shocked at being addressed. “My bedclothes should be washed once a week, unless I have company overnight or I fall ill. Just straighten them today. Wash them tomorrow. And don’t forget to address me properly.”

“What do you want me to call you, then?” Merlin asked. It seemed a reasonable question, but obviously not, given how the prince was gawking at her. “I was raised in a small town in the country. I’ve no knowledge of titles and nobility. What should I call you?”

“Oh,” the prince scoffed. “Poor country bumpkin, eh? Should have guessed. Call me sire or your highness. Your lord is acceptable as well, since I am your master.”

“Yes, my lord,” Merlin agreed with the same sarcastic tone and bow she had given him before the mace disaster. Arthur made a face.

“Do not use that tone,” he ordered. Merlin chose not to respond. She had a lengthy list of chores of which she had only heard about half, so it was already going to be a long day.

Merlin got the chambers tidied and the laundry done with what was left of the morning, but was late with Arthur’s noon meal. Even though some other servant had brought him food, she was still berated for it. Arthur gave her the list of chores again and even though Merlin had not heard half the list before, she was certain it was longer. Walk the dogs, clean everything the man owned, muck the stables, polish all his armor and chain mail and swords, and there was mending on the mail and his clothes. Heavens mercy, the normal chore list better not be this long. This was just because he had spent two weeks without a personal servant, surely. How did the other servants do it?

Merlin stumbled through the rest of her chores, getting everything at least half-done before she fell into bed. She had been run ragged, but not so much so that she did not hear the other servants laughing at her. The Constable, who was in charge of the armory had almost certainly given her more armor than belonged to the prince. The man who kept the prince’s dogs, fancy hunting hounds, had given her every dog in the kennel to exercise. The Marshal, who was in charge of the stables, had laughed in her face, but at least one of the stable hands had given her the proper shovel and looked vaguely sympathetic, despite his amusement at her expense. He had even introduced himself, his name was Faolan. She knew there had to be an easier way to do this and they all knew exactly what it was. Hopefully, someone would offer some advice soon enough.

Merlin woke up before the birds the next day, finishing the mending on his chain mail with just a touch of magic before she fetched his breakfast. The kitchen maid was very helpful, thankfully, so Merlin didn’t have to wade through the overcrowded kitchen herself. Of course, then she woke the prince up and he threw a tantrum about his breakfast. It was better food than Merlin had ever seen, but it was not good enough for him, apparently. Maybe that kitchen girl had not been quite so helpful, after all. Merlin did not give her the satisfaction of being visibly ruffled when she went back down and demanded the prince’s breakfast from the head cook. The girl was still smirking to herself, but at least she had not been given an opportunity to gloat about it.

The sweet girl who had introduced herself while Merlin was in the stocks very kindly showed her where the rushes were when the prat prince demanded to know why she had not already gotten fresh rushes for the floor. Gwen was actually helpful and they chatted later on as they did laundry. Merlin had the bedclothes and the prince’s clothes from the day before and Gwen was apparently the Lady Morgana’s personal servant and therefore had her clothing. Apparently the prince really was like that all the time, and as Merlin had suspected, she was not supposed to be doing all of this every day. What was the prat prince trying to prove with this?

As the prince sat down to his dinner, he ordered her to go draw him a bath. Merlin did not really process the implications of the request, namely that the man would be naked, until she was pouring the last bucketful of water into the tub and the prince walked out from behind his screen without a stitch on. Merlin nearly swallowed her tongue and dropped the bucket all at once. Horrid prat he might be, but he was gloriously formed. Thankfully, Merlin did not drop the bucket in the water and the prat preferred it when she was silent and so certainly did not notice her taking a moment to compose herself.

“Do you need anything else for the moment, or should I get back to my other chores?” Merlin managed to keep her voice steady and her eyes averted. The prince sank into his bath with a soft moan of pleasure.

“That will be all for the moment, yes,” he agreed, “Providing you have placed my soap and towels in easy reach. Do not forget that you must empty this out once I’ve finished with it.”

“Of course, your highness,” Merlin murmured. She quickly set his soap beside the bath and draped his towels over a chair that she dragged over beside him. Then she bid a hasty retreat. It had only been a few months since her last dalliance, but he had not been nearly as physically impressive as the prince was and she felt more than a little overwarm following the incident.

By some miracle, Merlin finished the rest of her chores in time to write a letter to her mother that night without feeling like she was going to be running without sleep the next morning. She might have written that night anyway, just to attempt to put the prince’s physique out of mind.

 

Dearest Mother,

Has it already been a week since I left? I have been so busy settling in that I have scarcely noticed the time pass. Gaius welcomed me with open arms and I even have my own little room with a bed all to myself! He’s been teaching me so much. I already feel so much more knowledgeable.

I made a friend too. Her name is Gwen, she’s a maidservant in the castle, to the King’s Ward. Gwen is very lovely, and also quite friendly. She came up to me the second day I was here and introduced herself and she’s been so kind about helping me find my way around. The citadel is so large that I’ve gotten turned around a few times while running errands. Gaius despairs of me for it, but I suspect he is only teasing.

Oh, and only a few days after I arrived, there was a Lady who came to the castle and she sang at a feast in her honor. Gaius let me go with him and she had the loveliest voice. It was a night I’ll not soon forget.

Of course, I miss you and Will, but I have much to keep me from thinking on the distance between us and I only hope that you have the same solace. I love you and wish only to please you, mother.

Yours,

Merlin 

 

Thankfully, the letter was quickly written. Merlin had very little news to report that was not vile and awful and she was exhausted and in no mood to pretend that everything was wonderful. She took a second parchment and a letter to Will nearly composed itself for her. She took care not to directly address sorcery in either letter, nor give any real hints that could incriminate her, in case something happened to her letters, like one of the other servants stealing them “for a lark”, but her letter to Will was much more honest about how she felt.

 

Dearest Will,

I hate it here. It’s horrible. I absolutely hate it. Of course, my letter to mother says all the right things. She insisted I come to apprentice with Gaius and I don’t want her upset. But it is dreadful. Gaius is constantly disapproving of everything I do. I did not manage to keep my head down. I told an ass off for throwing daggers at his servant and got attacked with a mace and then it turns out that the ass was royal so I spent the night in the dungeon and then three hours in the stocks. Royals should not be allowed to go about in peasant clothing in public if they aren’t wearing some manner of identifying mark or behaving impeccably. Honestly. Then I saved a man’s life. Unfortunately he’s a complete dollophead and happens to be the King’s son and now I’m his manservant! I belonged to no one when I arrived here. This was supposedly a “reward” for saving the idiot’s life. I should have just let him stand there like a deer while that woman threw a dagger at him. Of course, I have absolutely no idea how to do half the things he wants me to do and I still don’t know my way around. Pray for me that I do by the time this letter reaches you. I’m always messing up and I feel so stupid and then that prat prince acts like I couldn’t possibly be more incompetent. Everything is dreadful. I miss you awfully.

Well, I suppose everything is not dreadful. Everything in mother’s letter is true. But while Gwen is a lovely girl, she is just as patronizing as the prat prince. Her mother was a maidservant and Gwen has never known another life and cannot fathom that one might live a successful life without knowing how to perfectly fold the blankets on a bed twice the size of any I’ve ever seen before. I so desperately want to go home. I wish more than anything that mother had not been so set on my becoming a physician. I’m a perfectly competent farmer and woodcutter. Everyone doesn’t either think I’m an idiot or hate me because they grew up aspiring to be a servant and think serving a prince is a “grand honor that is sorely wasted on my ungrateful ass” at home. Oh, and one of the servants that was in line to be the prince’s next manservant has taken to calling me bastard every time he sees me. Yes, there was a line of succession for servitude. And, of course, the Steward’s niece was on this list, fairly close to the top (and they talk about the Druids being scandalous? They would certainly never have an unwed girl draw a man’s bath and help him dress and undress and wake him every morning.) so I have no help from that quarter either. Every time I’ve mentioned something to Gaius, he just tells me to get over it and learn to do everything faster. I think perhaps Hell does exist and this place is it. A man was executed for fixing a cart wheel the day I arrived. I hate everything here. Please talk sense into mother. I want to come home. No, don’t bother mother, it would upset her. There’s a dragon chained up below the keep. That’s how lost I got. I want to come home. I hate it here. [smudged ink-tearstain]

Please don’t let mother read this letter. I don’t want to upset her. And I know how you are when put on the spot, so just say: Merlin wrote me a love letter. It was desperately personal and I don’t think it would be right for you to read it. I miss you desperately, Will. Has it truly only been a week since I left? I hope it shall get better but I do not see how, other than that it would be difficult for it to get worse. Pray the Goddess to keep me. She answers prayers.

Love Always, 

Merlin

 

Merlin had both letters folded up and tucked into the belt of her tunic the next day, so if she suddenly happened on someone heading through Ealdor, she would have them to hand to send them off. Why, with all the other offices and duties that people had invented to occupy themselves, no one had yet devised a means to carry letters from one place to another without relying on the kindness of travelers, Merlin did not know. Of course, the prat prince saw them immediately upon her waking him, this time with the proper breakfast the first time.

“Do you often carry your love letters about?” he teased.

“I do have a mother,” Merlin snapped back. “And since I am not a royal who can own birds and men to send letters whenever and wherever he pleases, I must carry my letters with me until I find someone going where I need them to go. Now, are you going to lie there all day, or may I leave the breakfast on the table in anticipation of you at some point arising?”

“Leave the breakfast on the table and leave that sort of tone in the tavern. I am your employer, your master, your prince. You will not address me in such a manner.” The prince looked livid. Merlin inclined her head submissively.

“Yes, your highness,” she murmured.

“That’s much better. As an incentive for more good behavior in the future, I’ll have your letters sent for you. Where are they going?”

“I’m from Ealdor, in Essetir.”

“Why did you come here?” he seemed honestly curious, a little surprised as well, perhaps.

“My mother once studied a little under Gaius and thought I could benefit from learning to be a physician.”

“Well, yes, a physician obviously would have better prospects than a farmer,” the prince said sanctimoniously. Merlin decided that further conversation would only entice her to insult the prat again and turned away. She set her letters on his breakfast table and started puttering about, tidying up. The prince got up and went to the breakfast table, thankfully. After he ate, she helped him dress with little enough trouble, and he sent her off with another ridiculous list of chores. Merlin was more than a little frustrated, but she kept her commentary to herself. The prince could throw her in the dungeon or the stocks again, after all.

Arthur prided himself on self-restraint and self-control, but he did not spare either a thought as he sent his new manservant off on several unnecessary errands so he could read the boy’s correspondence before he had it sent off. There were two letters, but a mother would only need one at a time, surely, so perhaps he could discover some reason for the boy’s incomprehensible behavior in one or the other. If nothing else, the boy’s likely nearly illegible markings would provide some amusement. Arthur was to be proven mistaken. He opened the first letter and found a clear and pleasing hand that was almost better than his own. Where on earth had a peasant found time to learn to write so well?

The first letter was addressed to Mother, and described briefly the boy’s arrival in Camelot and assured her of his health and mentioned a girl, Morgana’s handmaiden, who had obviously caught his fancy. They were of about equal status, so there would be no harm in Arthur ignoring it and allowing them to do as they wished. Of course, he had thought the same when his squire had proposed to that serving maid who had been found dead in what should have been the Lady Helen’s chambers. Morris had, of course, had to be sent home so he could send her off properly and mourn. A man in mourning had no business being around so much weaponry. But it was unlikely that this sort of thing should happen again. The second letter was less brief, addressed to a “dearest” Will, which surprised Arthur a bit. The text of the letter surprised him more than a bit. One, Merlin clearly had not had a single clue who he was on their first meeting. Two, he obviously had no concept of how to live in a castle, since he wrote all manner of treasonous insult about the prince in a letter he had not even sealed. Three, he seemed to harbor sympathy for sorcerers, though considering he was from Essetir, it was perhaps not surprising. Four, what was this sentence randomly in the middle about there being a dragon below the keep? Surely Arthur would have been informed of that. Also, he would probably have to speak to the Steward. It would have been quite scandalous for a woman to draw his bath and help him dress and undress. That was certainly not how things were done in Camelot. Additionally, one did not insult a man that the King had decided would be honored, especially if one was as subject to the King’s whims as one of his servants. The matter of whoever was insulting Merlin’s parentage upon their every meeting would also have to be addressed, regardless of whether the epithet was true or not. Arthur might not wish to deal with a peasant for a manservant and be giving him far more chores than were truly among his duties in hopes of finding a good reason to get rid of him but that did not mean he could allow the boy to be insulted. Arthur would have a few stern words with the Steward after lunch, and he would have to hurry if he was going to be able to send off the letters before morning council.

The next three weeks brought little change in the prince’s attitude, sometimes he was horrible and dreadful, and other times he was tolerable and almost human. Thankfully, Merlin slowly learned the layout of the citadel, the quickest routes from one place to another and when to wake in the morning, even the week that it had rained nonstop for a full six days. The horrid man who had called her bastard had thankfully stopped. Merlin had no idea who had spoken to him but someone must have because he sent her venomous looks instead. Most of the servants began to begrudgingly respect her for continuously doing the work of several servants by herself, apparently the prince’s squire had been engaged to the girl who the sorceress had killed and the prince had dismissed the rest of the castle servants for his own amusement, but Merlin knew her work was far from perfect. The prince might over-react to anything she did wrong, or not to his standards, but he usually had a legitimate complaint. The bath water was not very warm, or she had not gotten something washed that he wanted to wear-never mind that the prat had stuffed it behind the wardrobe-or his chain mail was not correctly mended. Gwen had helped her with that bit. It turned out that her father was a blacksmith, so she actually knew how mail was made and how to fix it without resorting to magic. Merlin was very grateful for the assistance, as she had honestly stared at the chain mail for entirely too long before giving it up as a bad job and eventually using magic to fix the kinks instead.


	3. Less than Valiant

Merlin had been in Camelot for a month when the first tournament was held. It was some annual thing, held once it was clear that winter had ended and there would be no more snow. Of course, that did not mean that it was warm. The knights flooding in brought the welcome warmth of body heat to the drafty castle. Merlin did not mind the look of several of them either. Of course, between one thing and another, Gaius expecting her to study both science and magic while also finishing all of the prince’s chores, she had no time to dally with any of them. Of course, she discovered as the day of the tournament’s commencement approached that she would be in no physical state to dally even had she the time. The prince wanted to keep his abilities from the other knights, something about surprise and advantages. So he could no longer train on the green with his knights and their squires. Merlin had a few less than pleasant thoughts about his preferred training methods before she found herself stuffed into too much padding to make her anything other than extremely concerned and outfitted in old and clunky armor. Then he was stuffing a sword in her hand and yelling incomprehensibly at her. Merlin managed to recall enough of her training with daggers to decipher his screaming of “body” and shield” so she did not immediately fall over at the first hit, but the prince hit hard. She was on the ground within the first five minutes. It was more than slightly humiliating. Also, he had hit her helmet with the flat of his sword, so her ears were ringing as she pulled the helmet from her head.

“Do you hear that?” she asked. “It’s ringing.” The prince turned away, trying to hide his laughter even as he bent at the waist and succumbed to it.

“It is not. Get back up. You’re fine.”

“It is ringing,” Merlin asserted. It was ringing inside her head and that was real enough. And perhaps if the prince kept laughing, he would let her sit here for a moment so she could catch her breath. Of course, her luck had not been that good since she had left Ealdor. The prince hauled her back up to her feet, took a quick but careful look at her eyes to ascertain she had not jostled her head, put the helmet back on her head and started swinging at her again. Merlin fell over too many times to count in the hour before he let her go.

Merlin was covered in bruises the next day as she hurried through her morning chores so she could get the prince ready for the tournament, wishing they had been from something more enjoyable than being swatted at with a broadsword. Gwen had explained how to put armor on someone and it was not as complicated as Merlin had feared it might be. The armor all buckled together, like a belt did, and each piece was fitted to the body part it protected. Getting the prince into his armor seemed almost to be a sort of ritual. The prince had that same quietude that the priestesses did and Merlin was giving the task her full attention and the moment seemed infused with purpose. Finally, she handed him his helmet and sword and stepped back. Her breath caught in her throat.

“What?” the prince asked, sounding amused.

“I can see why the people love you now. You look so imposing in the armor. You look like a king.” Merlin shook herself out of the silly fancy. “Of course, they don’t know what your real temperament is, so they must think it suits how regal you look like this.”

“Shut up, Merlin,” he grumbled. “You should have stopped while you were ahead. Hand me my gloves.” Merlin handed them over. The prince snatched them from her and pulled them on roughly. Merlin ignored the show of temper. Further engagement would likely end with her in the stocks again.

The first day of the tournament went well for the prince. He easily defeated his opponents. Another favorite was a knight from no one knew where called Valiant. He just as easily defeated his opponents. There was already speculation that Valiant could possibly take the prince’s title of reigning Champion. Though there were many skilled knights, none showed quite to the same advantage on the first day, but there were several more days of duels. Merlin was grateful that the prince did not require her service at the feast that night, since she had quite a few chores left undone from being at the prince’s constant beck and call for the tournament. Of course, she had so many chores that she locked herself in her room and let magic do the simpler ones. Somehow Gaius knew and came in and scolded her for being careless. Merlin graciously held her tongue.

The next morning, she went to put the prince’s armor away in the armory and there was a strange sibilant noise. After a quick look about, she realized the sound seemed to emanate from a shield with an emblem of three snakes in a circular pattern. Was that not Valiant’s shield? As she stared at it curiously, she could have sworn that one of the snake’s tongues flickered and another winked at her. Was the shield enchanted? The snakes did seem to encircle the outline of a triskelion, a common druidic symbol. Surely there was no one foolhardy enough to enter a tournament in Camelot with an enchanted shield. Of course, no one could give the man a place of origin either. Perhaps all was not as it seemed. Of course, Merlin could not remain alone in the public armory forever.

“What are you looking at?” a voice demanded, a little angrily. Merlin turned to see Valiant himself, brows drawn and mouth pursed.

“I was admiring your crest, my lord. I was returning my master’s armor and your crest is just so striking. The snakes seem so real, as though I could pluck them from the shield.” The knight tensed up and frowned more deeply. Oh, that was clearly a soft spot.

“Save your flights of fancy for whatever woman is willing to overlook your ridiculous ears,” he sneered. Merlin just nodded and hurried past the man. Thankfully he did not grab her as she passed, but she would definitely have to be careful around the man after this. Also, she should keep a sharp eye out. It would be infuriating to somehow end up in trouble for this, if someone noticed her being too careful around the man without immediately having told the King. Hopefully Gaius would be able to convince the King not to have her executed in that case, but he could probably argue that not denouncing a man who was in a knights’ tournament against the prince and using magic in a kingdom that had banished magic on pain of death was treason.

Merlin kept her mouth shut until she discovered exactly how the shield had been enchanted. The prince was watching Valiant’s duel against one of Camelot’s knights, a Sir Ewan. Valiant was not doing as well. He was holding his own but it was full possible that it could be his last duel. But then Valiant managed to pin Sir Ewan under his shield and Merlin felt a burst of magic before Sir Ewan went limp. She barely managed to hold in her cry of outrage. If this had been Ealdor, she would have had at the man immediately for cowardice and base trickery, but as it was, she could not know that anything was wrong until Gaius had had long enough to find that snake bite she knew was on the knight’s neck. Valiant had the damn gall to look pleased with his win.

“That is unnatural,” the prince murmured under his breath. Merlin knew he was only thinking aloud but she nodded.

“That man gave me the creeps anyway,” she murmured, moving to join Gaius on the tourney field where poor Sir Ewan had obviously not arisen. Merlin missed the prince’s apprising expression on her back. Since the poor man had clearly been poisoned by the snakebite, Merlin got to trail Gaius trailing several knights carrying his body to Gaius’ chambers. It made Merlin feel a trifle better that the prince and King had called a halt to the duels and followed.

“What seems to be the diagnosis, Gaius?” the King asked.

“I’m not sure,” Gaius admitted. “Sir Ewan has been in fine health all winter. He had no likelihood of lingering illness to make him lose consciousness like this, nor had he any injuries still healing. I will have to do a full examination before I can venture a guess.”

“Might I venture a guess?” Merlin muttered under her breath. The prince’s eyes slid over to her. “Right, out of the armor, then?”

“Yes, Merlin,” Gaius nodded.

“Did you say you had a guess?” the prince asked. “Merlin, answer me.”

“I think Valiant may have cheated somehow. Sir Ewan was besting him and then Valiant only pinned him and this happened?”

“You have no proof and will not speak against your superiors, boy,” the King ordered. Merlin nodded.

“I will, of course, entertain all possibilities,” Gaius stated. He had his eyebrow raised at the King. The King then nodded and seemed almost to be smiling. How strange.

“I will await your diagnosis,” the King replied with a dismissive wave of his hand. He did not leave, but kept to the side so he would not be in Gaius’ way. Gaius nodded at Merlin while he bustled the prince and the knights out of the way as well. Merlin stripped Sir Ewan of his armor with his squire’s aid. She had mistaken the boy for another knight earlier, when he had helped carry his master, but with her attention equally on the boy as on the knight, it was clear that the two men were not of equal rank. Once the knight was down to his trousers and undershirt, Gaius did a thorough examination and quickly noticed the snake bite on his neck.

“He appears to have a snake bite on his neck,” Gaius announced to the room at large, looking to the King. Merlin was not exactly surprised.

“That sounds like an unfortunate accident,” the King responded. “You will be able to cure him?”

“I’ll need the snake’s venom to prepare an antidote, but it will be a simple cure,” Gaius agreed. “Poor man. He’ll be upset about having fallen out of the tournament for this.”

“I will take a few men and attempt to find the snake,” the prince decided. With a strange hand gesture, he turned and left the room. The knights followed him out. The King turned and strode out as well. Sir Ewan’s squire sat down beside his master, quiet and solemn.

“Valiant has three snakes on his shield,” Merlin commented, sending a pointed look at Gaius. He had to have felt the magic too. He ignored her. The squire did not. He turned and frowned at her.

“Are you suggesting that Valiant’s shield is enchanted?”

“I’m suggesting that Valiant was losing the duel and this is a very lucky coincidence for him,” Merlin replied. Obviously she was suggesting that the coward had an enchanted shield. Honestly.

“Merlin, keep your speculation to yourself,” Gaius scolded. “That’s a severe accusation. Remember that sorcery is a crime punished by execution.”

“Sorry, Gaius,” Merlin murmured.

“We always clear the whole area where there will be knights and spectators of vermin before a tournament. I would be surprised if a snake had managed to get through,” the squire mused. “And Valiant was certainly losing. Additionally, no one knows where he came from. He claims to be from the Western Isles but that crest doesn’t belong to any known family.”

“See, Merlin, this is why you must hold your tongue,” Gaius chided. “Galahad, there is no need to come up with such wild accusations. Sir Ewan was bit by a snake. He went into shock. Hopefully the knights will find the snake and I will brew the antidote and he will be fine. There is no reason to suspect anything else happened.” Merlin rolled her eyes. Was Gaius simple? Valiant had either enchanted the shield himself or paid someone to do it in order to ensure that he won 1000 gold pieces with no thought to the lives of any of his opponents. He was clearly the absolute worst sort of man and had no right to magic. She strode out the door and headed for the armory. Sir Ewan had been Valiant’s last duel today, she was nearly certain of it.

Merlin walked into the armory to the sibilant hissing of Valiant’s shield. It was in the same place it had been that morning. She picked up a long dagger, twirled it in her hand absently and then hissed back at the shield. The snakes shimmered a little and the hissing grew a bit louder. Merlin hissed back again, dagger poised in her hand. The snake in the middle struck out at her, but Merlin had the advantage. Her reflexes were quick, she was prepared for it to strike, and she had much more magic than an enchanted shield. The snake’s head fell to the ground and the shield went back to normal. The other two snakes would not risk themselves without their master’s order. Merlin cleaned the dagger with a flicker of her magic, replaced it on the stand and scooped the snake head up with her neckerchief. She carried it back up to the physician’s chambers.

The prince was in the physician’s chambers, standing awkwardly and looking vaguely uncomfortable. Galahad was crying. Oh, the poor thing had been told that they couldn’t find the snake on Valiant’s shield because they were not looking in the right place.

“Gaius, would this help?” Merlin asked, dropping the snake’s head on the table. Gaius’ eyes went wide, then he frowned most severely at her and gave her the eyebrow.

“What is that?” the prince asked.

“It’s a snake’s head. It came out of Valiant’s shield when I hissed back at it. I did say he was cheating.”

“How did you cut off a snake’s head?” the prince looked more than a little bewildered.

“We may not have swords or maces at home, but we do have plenty of knives, your highness. I’m a very competent farmer and killing snakes to protect the chickens is certainly among my abilities.”

“I will prepare an antidote from this snake’s venom and we shall see if Sir Ewan wakes,” Gaius decided. “He will be able to tell us what happened.” The prince settled in. Galahad was also watching the proceedings with interest. Merlin was put to work and Gaius kept accidentally rapping her knuckles. If he thought that rapping her knuckles would keep her from exposing such a horrible person, if Goddess forbid such a person showed up again, he should think twice. Merlin was a woman grown and she had no intention of compromising her principles to please a man who was not in charge of her in any form. The prince was the one who gave her a wage. Gaius was just taking advantage of her convenience. Of course, if she was never moved into the antechamber of the prince’s chambers, she could easily end up being both manservant and physician’s apprentice, which would end with her being a recognized physician. That would not necessarily be a terrible thing. In time, she was certain that she would come to have the servant’s goodwill and her duties would be less for the prince. It thankfully did not take long to prepare the antidote and Gaius soon tipped the brew down the knight’s throat. Galahad was praying to the One God. Merlin sent a prayer to the Goddess. She was more likely to answer, after all.

Ewan awoke with a strangled sound in his throat, trying to sit up. Merlin grabbed a cup and filled it with water, pressing it to his lips as Galahad tried to help Ewan sit up and Gaius tried to lay him back down. Ewan grasped listlessly at the cup as he drank. Merlin took the cup away after a moment, not wanting to cause him to founder himself. The prince was standing at her shoulder, staring down at the knight.

“Valiant… shield… snakes out of the shield…” Ewan gasped out, “Magic, highness.”

“Take your ease, Ewan,” the prince urged. “Gaius will keep you safe. We have a snake’s head from Valiant’s shield. I will tell my father of the matter and we will knock him out of the tournament. You are willing to bear witness to the claim that Valiant enchanted his shield so the snakes on it would strike his opponents?”

“I am willing,” the knight swore, trying to grasp at the prince’s forearm. Gaius poured a sleeping potion down the man’s throat.

“He will need rest to recover his strength. He was poisoned.”

“Of course,” the prince agreed and hurriedly strode from the room, taking the snake’s head with him. Once Galahad had lowered Ewan so he was lying down again, Gaius sent him for more water.

“Are you insane? You can’t just use magic wily-nily and expect people to believe your ridiculous explanations!”

“I told the prince the truth. I’m a dab hand with long daggers. All I had to do to tease the snake out was hiss back at it. And I was waiting for it to strike and took its head off.” Merlin put a silent protective blessing on the knight, in case Valiant either noticed that one of the snakes was not coming out or heard that Ewan was recovering. She did not know how far out of the shield the snakes could come or if he had any other enchanted objects that could ruin his recovery.

“You better be telling the truth or you will be in deep trouble,” Gaius warned, having finally noticed that she was ignoring his disapproving eyebrow. Galahad came back in with the water and settled down at his master’s side. Neither of them had the heart to force him to move. Merlin went to the prince’s chambers to straighten them out and see what chores actually did need to be done. The bedding should probably be changed but there was certainly not time for it, since the only time Merlin had to do it was while they would be needed. There was little enough other laundry, since the prince had not worn anything but armor for the past two days. It was kind of nice. The only thing that there really was for her to do was build up a fire to keep the chill out. She knew his animals would be cared for by the various servants who were actually supposed to be in charge of them. Thank the Goddess he had never gotten the idea to tell her to care for his hunting falcons. She might be named after a falcon but she knew absolutely nothing of them. Honestly, it had always been a mystery why her mother had chosen “Merlin” anyway. As she stood up from the hearth to take a last look around before she left, the prince walked in.

“Oh, Merlin,” he seemed surprised to see her.

“I’m afraid your bed linens can’t be changed until tomorrow,” Merlin murmured.

“That’s fine,” the prince shook his head. “I’m sure it would be smarter to wait until the last day of the tournament anyway. Help me out of this armor.”

“Yes, your highness,” Merlin agreed, crossing to where the prince was standing. He was looking at her strangely as she started undoing the buckles and taking the armor off him.

“Thank you for ignoring Gaius’ dismissal of your suspicions. You saved Sir Ewan’s life. All of Camelot is in your debt, as he is one of my best knights.”

“I have little inclination to ignore my own instincts in favor of someone else wishing to silence me,” Merlin admitted.

“I had noticed,” the prince almost sounded teasing. Merlin looked up from her task to see that he was smiling genuinely at her. “You did take me to task the first time we met. Entirely undeservedly, I might add.”

“Morris did exactly as you asked and you didn’t trust your skills with the sun in your eyes so you punished him to distract the knights with you from your insecurities. Someone ought to have called you out for it.” There was silence between them but the prince did not look angry with her, only amused.

“You will not curb your tongue, will you?”

“No.” Merlin shook her head.

“I think I like it,” the prince admitted. “Does Gaius have need of you?” Merlin could not quite parse the expression on his face. It resembled fondness, but why?

“I imagine he will want someone to sit up with Ewan so Galahad will sleep at some point in the night and Gaius is much too old to do it himself.”

“Of course,” he agreed. His expression went back to his usual studied blankness. “You are dismissed for the evening. I will expect you early tomorrow. I have an audience with my Father tomorrow before the tournament regarding Valiant. Make sure Gaius is aware that’s when Ewan will be needed.”

“Yes, your highness.” Merlin headed back to Gaius’ chambers, putting Arthur’s unusual behavior out of her head.

The next morning, Merlin got up even earlier than usual and nearly snatched Arthur’s breakfast out of the cook’s hands to get it to him with time to eat it before he had to meet his father. She settled the tray on the table and hurried over to the window.

“Rise and shine!” Merlin called as she flung the curtains open. “Up, up.” Arthur groaned, trying to hide his face in the pillow. “I know it’s early but you’ll want breakfast before you meet with your father because you won’t have time between that and your first duel. Get up!”

“Alright,” Arthur conceded, though he was still frowning, “I’ll get up for breakfast.” He somehow managed to untangle himself from his blankets and staggered to the breakfast table. Merlin brought his trousers, socks, boots, and armor over and helped him dress while he ate.

“I warned Gaius to have Ewan up and he seemed to be sleeping naturally when I left. I bumped into the table and he shifted at the noise.”

“Good,” Arthur slurred, mouth full of food. Somehow Arthur had cleaned his plate and Merlin had dressed him and he was striding regally down to the council chambers. They arrived with plenty of time but they were hardly the first to arrive. Sir Ewan was leaning on Galahad, but dressed and steady. Gaius was hovering worriedly. The counselors were all gathering in a knot, whispering amongst themselves. The King had not seen fit to include them in his confidence, it seemed. Arthur stood tall and strong as his father strode into the room with Valiant on his heels.

“What seems to be the problem, sire?” Valiant asked, feigning innocence.

The King looked down his nose at the knight. “My son, Prince Arthur, is accusing you of enchanting your shield to cheat in the tournament. He has Sir Ewan as a witness.”

“I would not…”

“Sir Ewan was bitten by a snake and the antidote was made from one of the three snakes in the shield,” Arthur stated. “Sir Ewan is willing to swear as witness to the snakes coming out of your shield and one of them striking him when you pinned him during your duel. Using a poison to defeat your opponents in a tournament is gross cheating. Using magic to poison your opponents is a crime punishable by death in Camelot.”

“Exactly why I would not have an enchanted shield,” Valiant replied weakly. He was clearly nervous and uncomfortable. Good. He deserved it.

“May I, then?” Arthur was baring his teeth at the other man, holding his hands out for the shield. He handed Merlin his dagger. “Merlin, hiss at the snakes as you did yesterday when you retrieved the snake head for the antidote. Defend yourself if one of them tries to strike.” Merlin focused on the shield and her magic touched the enchantment on the shield, agitating the snakes. The hissing started up. The shield shimmered at her, the two remaining snakes’ tongues flickering. They hissed at her. Merlin hissed back. Both lunged at her. Merlin jumped back, brandishing the dagger in front of her. Thankfully Valiant shouted in alarm and the snakes froze, looking to their master. “Thank you, Merlin,” Arthur told her.

“I think it is clear that your shield is enchanted, Valiant,” the King sneered. “Did you do it yourself or did you have an accomplice?” Valiant seemed to realize that there was no way out and slumped.

“My accomplice is dead. I have no magic myself and I killed him after I had picked up the shield to keep my secret safe.” Merlin was horrified at him. She neatly cut the heads off of the mesmerized snakes, causing the enchantment to fall apart entirely. Arthur nodded at her and handed the now harmless shield off to one of the guards who was not encircling Valiant menacingly.

“Good technique,” Arthur murmured, taking the dagger back from her. Merlin offered her neckerchief to clean the blade. Arthur took the scrap of cloth and wiped the blade clean before tucking the neckerchief in his sword belt. The King got Sir Ewan’s testimony as well, though with Merlin taunting the snakes out, it was a bit redundant.

“I was taught well and have a natural talent for it,” Merlin replied. “We had plenty of knives for me to practice with as well.”

“How did you not learn how to use your fists better?”

“I had no aim to actually hit you. I wanted the dagger you had on your hip. But then you said you were the prince and I decided shortening one of your fingers to the first knuckle would get me killed.” Arthur blinked and turned to stare at her.

“I suppose my grabbing you by the one arm did leave your other free and on the side I had the dagger on,” Arthur agreed.

“Therefore, Valiant, I hereby sentence you to death by beheading at first light tomorrow,” the King sentenced him. Merlin had to agree with the sentence. How many would he have killed just to win a stupid tournament? To protect everyone around him, the man would be better dead. The guards carted Valiant off to the dungeons despite his protests.

The King swept out to go down to the tournament and Arthur was close on his heels. Merlin followed Arthur. She fiddled with his armor absently, checking all the buckles were secure as they waited for his first duel. Arthur had gone quiet and seemed to be staring at nothing, blindly watching a fixed point in midair.

“I would have faced him tomorrow, I am certain. He could have left Camelot without an heir if you had not gone and gotten one of the snake’s heads to cure Ewan. Not to mention poor Ewan’s sweetheart would have been devastated. He has a sweetheart waiting on him to return home to marry her. I’ll lose Ewan this fall to her.”

“She will be very pleased that he was saved,” Merlin commented. Where was Arthur going with this? Was he simply thinking aloud? Given the way Arthur spluttered a bit and startled at her response, he must have been thinking aloud.

“Yes, of course, she will be most pleased,” Arthur agreed. “I hope you’re not angling to get some sort of reward from the lady.”

“It was just a statement of fact. I was unsure if you wanted a response or not so…” Merlin trailed off. Arthur nodded. The sound of Arthur being called to the tourney field interrupted any possible further conversation. Arthur strode off without a backward glance while Merlin snatched up his helmet and hurried after him. Arthur easily won the duel, quickly snapping into his usual focus. Of course, with Valiant out of the tournament, Arthur was the only favorite to win, so it was hardly surprising that he won all his duels that day again.

Arthur was quiet again that night after the tournament. He stopped in at the knight’s chambers to check on Ewan’s recovery. Galahad was still nervously hovering by the man’s side. Merlin just kept back near the entrance. All those burly men made her nervous, even though she knew full well she could take them with ease. Arthur did not tarry long, giving a few congratulations or condolences to the other knights competing and then headed to his own chambers. Merlin helped him out of his armor and built up a fire and Arthur dismissed her. She took his chainmail with her to repair a broken link before the morning.

At first light, Merlin was already in Arthur’s chambers, standing by his side at the window. She had assumed they would go to the courtyard to bear witness to Valiant’s execution but Arthur had insisted that they would watch from the window instead. His breakfast sat on the table, ignored. All she had been able to force on him was a shirt and trousers.

“Is it over?” Morgana asked from the doorway, just as the executioner swung the axe down. Both Arthur and Merlin startled.

“It is now, Morgana,” Arthur assured her.

“Aren’t you glad I insisted you put clothing on?” Merlin whispered. Arthur sent her a look before turning back to Morgana.

“Have you eaten?” he asked, crossing to the table his tray was on and sitting down.

“Yes, I had breakfast earlier,” Morgana nodded. She sat down across from Arthur, “I’m afraid I had a nightmare early this morning and had Gwen pulled out of bed before the birds. She’s taking a short respite in my chambers now.”

“That’s kind of you,” Merlin said without thinking. Arthur swatted at him and Merlin dodged.

“You only speak to superiors when spoken to. You are my servant and Morgana is the only child of the House of Gorlois,” Arthur chided.

“Oh, you are Vivienne’s daughter,” Merlin turned to Morgana in surprise. She had not realized that Morgana was the daughter of a high priestess.

“Merlin!” Arthur snapped. “Shut up.”

“Yes, your highness,” Merlin grumbled. “Will you concede to putting your armor on yet?” Arthur nodded grumpily. Merlin quickly fetched the armor over from the other table.

“Is there a story here?” Morgana asked, turning to look at Merlin. Clearly the question was for her and Arthur could not fault her for answering.

“I had to practically pin him down and force him into his shirt and trousers,” Merlin explained. “Thankfully I had more sense than he does, since you came to visit so early.”

“I suppose it is early,” Morgana agreed. “Arthur would have been more insufferable than usual had he not been clothed when I let myself in.”

“I am not insufferable,” Arthur protested around a mouthful of food. Both Morgana and Merlin gave him a look. He was almost always insufferable. “Merlin, remember that I’m the one who pays you your living.”

“I came here to be Gaius’ assistant and hopefully apprentice, not your manservant,” Merlin snapped back, but she went back to her task of trying to get him in the armor without disturbing his breakfast overmuch.

“You’re doing quite well with that Merlin,” Morgana complimented. “Gwen told me she explained all the pieces of armor to you. You seem to have quite gotten the hang of it already.”

“Thank you, my lady,” Merlin replied sincerely with a half bow. She was the daughter of a high priestess after all.

“You never bow to me,” Arthur complained.

“Didn’t I already explain to you that you’re an ass?” Merlin grumbled. Morgana laughed brightly. Arthur’s expression brightened at the sound, distracting him from whatever punishment with which he had been about to threaten her.

“Perhaps I shall give you to Morgana as a fool, to keep her amused,” he suggested. Morgana giggled a little, but was shaking her head.

“No, Arthur, I think you provide half the amusement and you cannot give yourself to me as a fool,” she teased. Merlin decided she quite liked the Lady Morgana.

“Honestly, Morgana,” Arthur grumbled good-naturedly, trying to hide his smile. Oh? Did Arthur secretly love Morgana? Was there credence to the rumors about her not having been married because she was implicitly promised to Arthur? This could be interesting indeed.

“I should go before someone starts telling tales. Uther would be insufferable if a rumor started about me with so many guests here,” Morgana said with a sigh. “Good luck in the tournament today, Arthur. I will see you later on.” She stood back up.

“Thank you, Morgana,” Arthur replied. She nodded and took her leave. Merlin and Arthur both watched her, and coincidentally the conversation, go. Arthur finished his breakfast. Merlin got him into the last of his armor. They headed down to the tournament. Clouds slowly gathered over the course of the day, threatening to flood the tournament out. Arthur won four duels and the last won him the whole tournament, thankfully just before the threatening clouds poured rain down and everyone had to rush inside. Despite the cause for celebration, Arthur was somewhat subdued throughout the rest of the afternoon, perhaps emulating the weather, while he bathed and Merlin hurriedly did the laundry. She had to clean his bedding and his gambeson and his surcoat before suppertime because Arthur did not dismiss Merlin from the feast to celebrate the tournament Champion that night.

“You made Morgana laugh this morning with your impertinence. She’s going to be exhausted. You will attend me and so long as it keeps Morgana in a good humor, you may say whatever you like.”

“That’s very kind of you,” Merlin eyed him closely. “Is it because you care for her, or is there more to the servants saying Morgana is yet unmarried because she will be your Queen than gossip?”

“Morgana has been my Father’s ward for ten years. Of course I care for her welfare,” Arthur protested, not looking terribly put out about it.

“Keeping her in good humor at your own expense is hardly her welfare,” Merlin teased though it was clear that Arthur was not secretly in love with Morgana. Shame. She could have teased him about it.

“Merlin!”

“Shut up?”

“Exactly,” Arthur snapped. “Now come on.” Merlin slumped her shoulders in, making herself smaller in deference so she did not appear to be the full inch taller than him she was. Arthur nodded sharply in approval and swept out of his chambers. Merlin followed along quietly.

Arthur and Morgana met just before the entrance to the Banquet Hall and joined arms. Gwen was trailing Morgana, as usual, and Merlin grinned at her and waved. Gwen blushed and rolled her eyes but smiled back. She led Merlin out of the way of the guests as Morgana and Arthur wandered slowly among the courtiers and knights, idly chatting.

“I’ve been given leave to say anything so long as it amuses Morgana,” Merlin confided in Gwen.

“The prince will regret that,” Gwen scoffed. “Watch your tongue anyway. He’ll find some way to get you back for anything that upsets him.”

“I do his laundry and bring his meals,” Merlin commented with a sly smile. She winked at Gwen, who was absolutely horrified.

“Merlin!” she chided. Merlin ignored Gwen’s dismay. She was not going to do anything drastic. After a too long moment of Gwen attempting to glare her into being ashamed and Merlin ignoring her, everyone was seated and they both moved to stand behind Arthur and Morgana.

“I see you’ve sufficiently trained your manservant to allow him in public,” the King observed.

“Well, he’s impertinent, but it amuses Morgana,” Arthur capitulated. Merlin had been given leave to say anything.

“And I live to serve,” Merlin drawled sarcastically. Morgana smiled at her and the King swallowed his irritation in the face of her pleasure. Merlin decided to do something less likely to make the King look like he had swallowed his tongue. “Oh, my lady, what is that on your shoulder?” she asked playfully. Merlin reached out, carefully ducking her head, and pulled her hand back with a small wildflower bloom between her fingers, which she presented to Morgana. The King smiled magnanimously while Morgana beamed.

“You can do fool’s tricks?” Arthur asked incredulously.

“Only that one,” Merlin shrugged. “It’s easy to conceal a small flower in your hand or sleeve.” The King proceeded to ignore them, speaking to an older knight that was seated at his left. Arthur turned around as well, and Morgana followed suit after she gave the flower to Gwen for safekeeping. Arthur and Morgana made absent conversation about the tournament, carefully avoiding all mention of Valiant. When Merlin went to refill Arthur’s cup, he caught her wrist.

“You really should bow to your betters, Merlin,” he chided. Merlin took it as a cue to be impertinent and amuse Morgana.

“I will bow to a superior when I see one,” Merlin quipped.

“And do you see one?” Arthur asked, something dark in his eyes.

“Let me see,” Merlin murmured. She turned to Morgana, who was listening in intently to the conversation. “Ah, found one.” She met Morgana’s eyes and then bowed to her. Arthur swatted gently at her side, even as Morgana smiled indulgently at her. The long day was getting to Morgana, but her eyes said that she had found the joke pleasing.

“Merlin, go learn some manners from Morgana’s handmaiden. Honestly.” Merlin obediently stepped back.

“That was sweet of you,” Gwen murmured.

“I’m trying. She has to be exhausted,” Merlin whispered back.

“She let me take a respite in her room and I got a few hours’ sleep but Morgana hasn’t even lain down,” Gwen whispered. “I do hope she doesn’t fall asleep in her food. She would be mortified.” As though Gwen had hexed her with the words, Morgana had to hastily stifle a yawn. The King turned to her and solicitously asked after her health.

“I awoke early this morning and I’m afraid the excitement of the day has caught up to me. You wouldn’t be offended if I retired early, would you, Uther? Nor you, Arthur?”

“Of course not,” Arthur assured her.

“Go get your rest,” the King agreed. Morgana smiled sweetly at both of them and Gwen passed the pitcher of wine to Merlin before following Morgana out of the hall. Arthur did not leave until much later and Merlin had to help him undress before she was allowed to stumble to her room and fall asleep.


	4. A Helpful Arthur

The days following the tournament were quiet. Merlin followed Arthur around like a puppy by Arthur’s orders and chatted with Gwen when Morgana was also present. She did her chores as quickly as possible. The lists were still long, but Arthur had at least not put anything about his animals on the list since before the tournament and the day after the tournament, while it was still raining, he didn’t give her any chores that bade her go outside. Merlin was very grateful, as they were the most time consuming of her chores. Unfortunately the quiet did not last.

One morning, one of the townspeople came rushing into Gaius’ chambers in a panic about a dead man in the street outside her shop. Merlin sent another servant with Arthur’s breakfast and her explanation for not being available and followed Gaius down to the market. The body was an unnatural white with the veins standing out dark blue in contrast. The eyes were open and there was a white film over the iris. It was disturbing to see. Merlin felt a strange crawling sensation on her skin, like a thousand invisible bugs moving over her body.

“People mustn’t see this,” Gaius said urgently. “They will panic.” Merlin nodded absently, looking around. She snatched a bedsheet off a laundry line and Gaius covered the body with it. Gaius got one of the children to fetch them a wheelbarrow to move the body up to the castle for Gaius to examine. If whatever the poor man had caught was catching, they would need some sort of remedy. Of course, as they were almost up to the castle, they passed Gwen, who had picked some pretty purple wildflowers.

“What are you doing?” Gwen asked. Merlin felt her stomach turn.

“Uh, just moving something,” she gave Gwen a tight smile.

“Looks heavy,” Gwen observed. Merlin shrugged.

“It’s nothing, really. Did someone get you flowers? They’re pretty.”

“Oh!” Gwen blushed and ducked her head, “No, I picked them for Morgana. Thought it might brighten her day now that all the knights have left from the tournament. Would you like one? I think purple suits you… not that red doesn’t, of course.”

“Thanks,” Merlin cut her babbling off with a smile, holding her hand out. Gwen dropped a blossom in her hand. Her hair was too short to hold it... Merlin tucked it in her scarf and made a sort of ta-da motion at it. Gwen smiled back and hurried off.

“Was all that flirting necessary?” Gaius groused.

“She didn’t ask what we were moving, did she?” Merlin retorted. Gaius went quiet and nodded slowly.

“That flower looks ridiculous by the way,” he muttered.

“It made Gwen smile,” Merlin replied with a shrug. They finished hauling the dead body up to Gaius’ chambers for examination. Merlin had to lift it onto the table by herself, as Gaius was too old to help without hurting his back. Gaius was waiting with a magnifying glass once Merlin had straightened the body out, trying to ignore the horrible crawling bug sensation.

“I’ve never seen anything like this before,” Gaius murmured.

“Is it a plague?” Merlin asked. Something felt strange about the whole thing but it was not a kind of strangeness that she recognized.

“No. This did not come from nature. But who has this kind of power?” He was clearly talking to himself.

“This is magic? What could he have possibly done to warrant this punishment?”

“I think someone sent a sickness. It’s not him, it’s that he was exposed to whatever they cursed.” Merlin felt sick. Her stomach roiled and she clamped a hand to her mouth.

“Merlin!” Arthur’s voice rang out in the hall. Merlin rushed to the door to intercept him before he saw the body.

“I told Adara to tell you that Gaius had need of me this morning,” Merlin said hurriedly.

“Yes, and now my Father has need of Gaius in his council chambers,” Arthur retorted. “We must go at once.”

“I’m coming, your highness,” Gaius replied from behind her, but Merlin did not let go of the door until Gaius was pushing her through it. All three of them hurried down to the courtyard and into the main wing of the castle, to the council chambers. The King had his counselors assembled around a dead body of the same variety as the one they had just left in Gaius’ chambers.

“What’s happened to him?” the King demanded. Merlin covered her mouth to hold her tongue.

“I’m not certain,” Gaius murmured. “It is the second case I’ve seen today, but I could not determine the cause before you sent for me.”

“Well, what are you currently investigating as the possible cause?” the King asked irritably.

“Sorcery, sire,” Gaius replied. Merlin’s hand dropped and her mouth fell open. Was he insane?

“Sorcery?!” the King drew himself up to his full height and glowered down at the dead body. “Arthur! You must increase our presence in the lower town. Do door to door searches and double the guard on the gate. We must find the sorcerer immediately!” Merlin quickly closed her mouth. What had Gaius done? How was this going to help at all? If someone was going to curse a plague on a town, they would not be in said town when the curse took effect. That would be insane. The only sorcerers who could get caught would be innocent and the King would put them to death anyway.

Arthur gave Merlin time off her duties as his manservant until the plague was over so she could aid Gaius in his attempt to find a cause. Merlin soon realized that Gaius did not care too much about the townspeople. They would rush out into the street and beg him to come and help and unless there was a death, Gaius would coldly spurn them. Merlin went in to each house and prayed to the Goddess for their health to return, and stuffing a healing poultice she conjured at the end of her prayer under each pillow. The Goddess always gave aid when asked. They would get better while Gaius coldly searched for his “cause”. Arthur of course, had found no sorcerer nor any trace of one by the end of the day. Gaius had found little in the way of “cause”, only that it must be ingested, because those who were caring for the sick did not seem to be uniformly falling sick as well. Merlin told Gaius that Arthur had asked for her and went back out into the town that night, sneaking through the shadows and following the creeping, crawling feeling to each person who had fallen prey to this curse. Merlin prayed over dozens of sickbeds, making sure not to leave a poultice, just in case, and barely got back to her bed before Gaius was dragging her out of bed and complaining of her being lazy.

The next day passed the same, though a courtier died and Gaius thought that the curse might be transmitted through the water, since it was the only thing a courtier and all the commoners would have eaten in common from the same source. Merlin saw so many guards with the Pendragon crest that the image of a golden dragon was swimming in her head all day, making it difficult to think. Gaius spoke only to the families with dead relatives, which was down to two families. Merlin smiled at the families who were grateful that their loved ones had recovered. She prayed over those who had fallen ill and gave them a poultice. 

That evening, they deviated from the work of the day before. Gaius took Merlin down to the cistern, the source of all the water in the citadel to get some samples, see if there was some contaminant that they could try to eliminate. Merlin scooped up two glass tubes full of water and was stoppering them for travel as a strange looking brown creature lurched up from the water. Gaius gasped, reaching out and dragging Merlin back. Merlin easily acceded to leaving quickly. Without any idea of what the creature was, she could end up strengthening it rather than defeating it without meaning to. Safely back in Gaius’ chambers, they both went through his books to find the creature.

“Here!” Gaius found it. “It’s an Afanc. A beast made of clay conjured into life by a powerful sorcerer. It can carry an enchantment or curse with it.”

“It’s the cause of the plague, then,” Merlin said. “The cistern is fed by a river. Whoever it was could have dropped into the water all the way back up to the mountains at the border to Essetir.”

“Does it go that far?”

“It was the river I followed to Camelot, as much as the roads.” Merlin sighed. “I don’t suppose there’s anything in there on how to un-conjure an Afanc?”

At some point, the thought went through her brain that the real dragon looked nothing like the crest. She then realized that she could ask the dragon for help. He had to know something. Dragons had been made of magic, right? It was why there were so many witches and warlocks her age across all of Albion. King Uther had slaughtered the dragons and the magic had gone coursing out into the world and made those born in the year or so afterwards more powerful. If he was made of magic, then he should be able to give her some way to destroy the creature.

“Hello?” Merlin called out.

“Ah, the young warlock returns!” the dragon called out merrily.

“How do you defeat an Afanc?” Merlin asked.

“Oh, that would be useful information for you,” the dragon agreed teasingly. “Just use the elements that are at your disposal.” Merlin waited for an explanation. The dragon continued to stare at her.

“Is this a riddle? What elements do you mean? Should I pray to the Goddess and hope she destroys it or use my own magic? Or do you mean the four elements of the earth, and if so, how does that help?”

“The elements of the earth, young warlock,” the dragon answered. “You are not as uneducated as I thought from our last meeting.”

“But what elements? It’s made of clay and it lives in water. I can’t drown it. Does clay even burn?”

“It can burn if you add enough air to dry it out,” the dragon replied sagely. “Take the young Pendragon with you. You are but one side of a coin. He is the other. You will neither one fulfill your destiny without the other.”

“I will take that into consideration,” Merlin lied through her teeth. “I thank you for your assistance.” The dragon said nothing in response, just lifted himself into the air.

As he disappeared onto the overhanging ledge above her, he called back, “You cannot do this alone.” Merlin did not believe that for a moment. She went straight back to the cistern with her torch. She was a powerful witch and did not need a knight to set a piece of clay on fire for her.

The Afanc was thankfully not in the water when she returned. It was stalking the tunnels. Merlin quickly got cornered, but she started up a windstorm, keeping the Afanc trapped with the wind and at bay with her torch. Once the Afanc was moving stiffly, clearly drying out, Merlin let the fire on the torch get caught in the windstorm and it swirled around the Afanc, roasting it alive. The creature quickly burned down to dirt ash, falling to bits on the floor. Merlin sent a quick prayer to the Goddess that the Afanc finished was the end of it. Just to be certain, she went to the cistern itself. A large, cracked, egg shell was bobbing on the surface of the center pool. Merlin carefully picked it up. It clearly had the markings of sorcery on it, many of which Merlin was not certain what they might mean. Given that she had been instructed by Druids, who would rather die themselves than take a life, she was not terribly surprised. Rather than trust Gaius, Merlin took the egg shell to Arthur.

“What is this?” Arthur asked, looking like he rather thought that he had been awake for too long already.

“Well, Gaius decided he thought the problem might be in the water.”

“Yes.” Arthur blinked at her.

“We went to the cisterns and there was this creature, monster thing in the water.”

“Alright…”

“Gaius and I of course left in a hurry. We looked through his books. It was an Afanc.”

“And you want me to kill it.”

“No, I killed it. You just had to let it chase you about until it dried out and throw a torch on it.”

“Okay. You burned the creature. What’s the egg shell?”

“Proof for the source of the plague,” Merlin replied. “It should be gone now.”

“Alright. Give me the egg. Tell no one ever that you killed the creature. I’m telling Father I did it so you don’t get accused of sorcery.”

“Thank you?” Merlin replied, feeling very confused.

“Well, now you look how I feel, so at least we’re even,” Arthur mumbled. “Alright, straighten up my chambers before I get back and don’t let me forget to have you wash the bedding tomorrow. The water is safe?”

“The plague was in the creature. It’s called an Afanc.”

“Afanc, Afanc, Afanc,” Arthur murmured under his breath as though trying to memorize the name. He strode out. Merlin then took in the state of his chambers. Had there not been a single servant in here since the plague began? She heaved a sigh and began straightening up. Thankfully, most of the mess was laundry, because it all went in a basket by the wardrobe, and what was not dirty laundry was easily put away. The room was mostly tidied when Arthur returned, without the egg shell, looking more than a little exhausted.

“I’ve straightened up almost everything. Did you need anything else?”

“Help me out of these clothes before I fall over and then you can go,” Arthur replied. Merlin easily removed the light armor he had been wearing for days to look intimidating. As though vambraces and chain mail would intimidate someone with powerful magic. Thankfully, despite Merlin being tired, her fingers worked just as well as always. Arthur collapsed face down onto his bed and Merlin pulled his blankets over him before heading back to her own bed. Gaius was not there when she returned. Perhaps the King had summoned him about the egg shell. She brushed it off and collapsed into bed herself. She was asleep almost as soon as her head touched the pillow.

The next morning, Merlin had only just gotten Arthur out of bed when a guard came rushing in. She was summoned before the King to explain what she had done to heal the townspeople and servants who had fallen ill but not died after she had come in. The guard looked scared. Arthur had insisted she put him in his chain mail and crown before they went with his tallest boots. Merlin forced herself to breathe. No one had seen her magic up the poultices and she had not done any other magic. Also, quite a few of those she had helped had no idea she had come in and would believe it when they said they healed “naturally”. She would not be executed.

Of course, as she walked into the council chambers behind Arthur, Gaius was frowning at her and making the eyebrow of disapproval. Merlin ignored him. The King had a sort of blank expression on his face. At least he did not appear to be upset or angry already.

“Father, may I inquire as to why you have summoned my manservant? I would rather hear from you than a guard.” Arthur put a hand out to keep Merlin from moving out from behind him, shielding her with his body.

“Of course,” the King nodded. “Gaius was so busily looking for the cause of plague to find a way to cure it that he had no time to give empty platitudes to the townspeople. Your manservant went into their houses in his stead and despite there being no cure, the sick he visited recovered. I would like to know what he did to cause them to recover.”

Arthur stiffened, turning towards Merlin, and whispering, “Just tell the truth. I won’t let him execute you.”

“Gaius had no cure, but I could not let everyone despair. I went in to the houses and prayed over the sick, that their good health would return. I put a sachet of herbs under their pillow, herbs that promote healing. That’s all I did. And I did not go into every house that had someone recover.” Gwen, whose father Merlin had healed during the night, was nodding emphatically.

“Who did you pray to?” the King asked.

“I’m from Essetir. I prayed to the Triple Goddess.”

“Well, as much as we do not encourage her worship, prayer is not magic and is not illegal. Gaius will have to ascertain that there was no magic in your sachets of herbs. Which herbs did you use?”

“Lavender, Basil, Rosemary, St. John’s Wort, and Milk Thistle,” Merlin replied. “They all heal internal maladies and both lavender and St John’s Wort promote sleep, which helps the body heal itself.” The King looked to Gaius for confirmation. He nodded.

“All those herbs help heal internal maladies. Rosemary promotes wellness. Those who eat rosemary can allay the ill effects of old age. Milk thistle aids digestion. Holy Basil, I assume Merlin took some of my stash of Holy Basil rather than the simple seasoning, can help with many mild maladies, such as headaches or stomachaches. Lavender and St. John’s Wort both help a patient sleep, which is when the body is best able to heal itself. Without having one of the sachets, I would not be able to ascertain whether or not magic had enhanced the natural remedy, but I do not believe Merlin to be a sorcerer.”

“Of course, Gaius,” the King nodded. “Can you give me an example of someone who was healed who you did not interact with?”

“Um, Gwen said her father went to bed sick and woke up well again. And Adara, one of the kitchen maids, fell ill the morning we realized there was a plague. I did not have time to visit her and she is well now.”

“And I as well,” Morgana spoke up. “I felt quite awful the night before last night, which is why I begged out of supper. But yesterday morning I awoke feeling fine. Merlin was certainly not in my bedchambers overnight.”

“No,” Merlin agreed, quickly shaking her head.

“You see, the plague was not as devastating as we first feared, that is all,” Arthur spoke up. “Merlin just made the patients and their families feel as though something had been done to help them. Once the first few who fell ill had died, and so quickly, people were more careful to treat the illness as something serious. None of the ones who died took to their beds or sought any sort of treatment. They thought that they just felt poorly and would be fine after a night’s rest, but they overworked themselves and succumbed to the illness. Morgana felt ill and immediately took to her bed and was just fine in the morning.”

“Yes,” the King agreed. “There is no reason to suspect that your manservant used sorcery. He’s free to go.” Arthur smiled at his father and hurriedly led Merlin out of the room.

“You snuck in people’s houses and Morgana’s chambers at night?” he hissed. “You could have been imprisoned for that alone!”

“It was just to pray,” Merlin retorted.

“Oh, my god, I cannot let you out of my sight,” Arthur groaned. “God only knows what you’d do. Can you even manage to do the laundry without causing some sort of uproar?” Merlin frowned at him. She was perfectly competent. Arthur just rolled his eyes and led the way back to his chambers so she could get the dirty laundry and his bedding to wash.


	5. Tricks and Poison

Merlin and Gaius had thankfully made up by the time the Mercians arrived to sign the peace treaty, because Arthur had gotten increasingly difficult to live with. She understood that he was worried about everything going well and concerned that it would not and three straight days of rain preventing him from training or going on patrol did not help. The King was in just as fine a mood as Arthur, so it was hardly shocking that everyone in his household was on edge in trying not to end up on his bad side. Apparently Camelot had been at war with Mercia for quite a few years now and this was the culmination of nearly a year of negotiations.

Finally King Bayard of Mercia and his entourage arrived. Despite the rest of the castle servants being in a complete uproar, Merlin was a little relieved. They were to sign the treaty as soon as logistically possible after their arrival and then Arthur would be in a much better mood. Merlin tried very hard not to consider why Arthur being in a good mood was so important to her for any length of time because it would not lead to anything good.

“Camelot welcomes you, King Bayard of Mercia. The treaty we sign today marks an end to war and a beginning to a new friendship between our people.” Uther greeted them in the throne room, Arthur only half a step behind him and Merlin hovering at the distance Gwen had recommended. The two kings grasped arms and everyone applauded. Of course, then everyone retired to their chambers to refresh before the treaty signing and celebratory feast that night. Merlin ended up hauling some of the King’s bags in, much to Gaius’ amusement. Another of the servants, probably one of Bayard’s since Merlin didn’t recognize the girl, fell as Merlin was passing. Merlin eagerly took the opportunity to drop her load and helped the girl gather the linens that had been in her arms and stand back up. As she met the girl’s eyes, she knew that the girl had to be from Mercia. There was magic in her.

“Hi, I’m Merlin,” she introduced herself.

“Cara,” the girl replied, ducking her head. “You must be Arthur’s servant. That has to be such an honor.”

“Well, someone has to keep the place running.” Merlin was only partially aware of what she was saying, so glad to have the familiar feel of someone with magic in front of her. There was a feeling of kinship among all those with magic, as their magic recognized one another, and she had sorely missed that.

“Thank you, Merlin,” Cara took the pillow she had picked up out of her hands. “It was nice to meet you.”

“And you as well,” Merlin replied. Cara turned gracefully and swayed off. Merlin had a brief moment of jealousy, remembering being able to move that easily. Now she was all knees and elbows and too-big ears.

“Shouldn’t you be running the place?” Gaius teased. Merlin rolled her eyes as he laughed good-naturedly at her and picked her bag back up, following along behind him again.  
With only an hour before the feast, Merlin found herself back in Arthur’s chambers. He had thankfully already told her what he wanted to wear days before and she had hunted it down to find that the jacket had been tucked behind the wardrobe and stank to high heavens. She had washed it three times before she got the stench out.

“Did you polish the buttons? They look a little dull,” Arthur grumbled.

“I have not polished the buttons, but I have a cloth right here,” Merlin replied. “I’ll polish buttons, you get yourself dressed. I know that you can manage trousers and a shirt by yourself.” Arthur swatted at her, but turned and got dressed. About the time she had finished with the buttons, he had finished dressing. Arthur turned his back to her and held his arms back. Merlin slid the jacket up to his shoulders. He turned and she secured the ties at his neck.

“Alright, now you,” Arthur said with a grin. Merlin eyed him suspiciously.

“What?”

“You’re going to be wearing the official ceremonial robes of the servants of Camelot,” Arthur replied. He still looked entirely too pleased with himself. Merlin soon discovered why. She could wear her own trousers and boots, at least, and the tunic was fine-just Pendragon red with the crest on it over her usual shirt. But! There was a somewhat disturbing looking short cape and an absolutely horrifying feathered hat.

“That?”

“If I have to sit through all these boring speeches, I’ll need something to keep myself entertained and thankfully for me, these actually are the traditional robes for a formal event like this.” Arthur was beaming. Merlin was horrified. But somehow she ended up letting Arthur secure the cloak at her throat and put the feathered monstrosity on her head like she believed him that it was a hat.

The feast was not as bad as Arthur had made it sound. Morgana was at the feast, so Gwen was attending her so Merlin had someone to chat with and Cara kept sneaking glances at her. Perhaps they would have time to chat before the Mercians left and they could be friends. Eventually, Gwen noticed where Merlin was looking.

“She’s pretty, isn’t she? For a handmaiden, I mean.”

“She’s pretty for a princess, let alone a handmaiden,” Merlin mused. So too had she been. Perhaps it was a gift from their magic, that their features were so even and pleasing to the eye. Gwen just hummed in response. Merlin shrugged it off. Mayhap she was hoping for a similar compliment, but it might give the wrong impression, since Gwen thought Merlin was a man.

They finished signing and Bayard began a speech. “People of Camelot, for a great many years we have been mortal enemies, and the blood of our men stains the ground from the walls of Camelot to the gates of Mercia. And though we remember those who have died, we must not allow any more to join them.” A serving girl brought in a closed box. “As a symbol of our goodwill, and of our newfound friendship, I present these ceremonial goblets to you, Uther, and to your son, Arthur, in the hope that our friendship may last.” Cara made her way quickly to Merlin’s side.

“Merlin, I need to speak to you,” she murmured.

“What is it?” Merlin asked.

“Not here, please, but I don’t know who else to tell.” She seemed quite distressed, so Merlin let herself be led out of the hall and into a corner. How had Cara known that there was an alcove here? Not important.

“It wasn’t until I saw those goblets for Uther and Arthur that I realized…”

“Start from the beginning,” Merlin ordered.

“I was bringing Bayard his evening meal and I didn’t knock and we’re supposed to and he wasn’t expecting me and he was putting something in the goblet…” Cara looked away, clearly worried. “Oh, I shouldn’t say. If he knows I said anything, he’ll kill me.”

“Just tell me. You have nothing to fear from Bayard.”

“He said something about if Arthur was dead that Uther’s spirit would be broken and Camelot would fall,” Cara replied. Merlin knew there was something not quite right about the whole conversation, but there was only one fact that mattered.

“Arthur’s goblet, is it poisoned?” she asked.

“Yes,” Cara nodded. That was the truth. Merlin ran back into the hall. They were toasting and Arthur had his goblet, the poisoned goblet, raised to his lips. It was as though her heart stopped.

“Stop!” Merlin screeched. “It’s poisoned, don’t drink it.”

“What?” the King demanded.

“Merlin, what are you doing?” Arthur asked, full of concern.

“The goblet’s been laced with poison by someone. You’ll die if you drink it.”

“Someone?” the King asked.

“The person who told me said it was King Bayard, but I’m not certain they were telling the truth. But it’s poisoned. That was true.”

“This is an outrage!” Bayard drew his sword. “I have kept these goblets in my own personal belongings. I will not allow this insult to go unchallenged.”

“Merlin, think this through,” Arthur urged. “You’re accusing him of trying to poison me.”

“No. I didn’t say King Bayard did it. I said the goblet was poisoned.”

“Pass me the goblet,” the King ordered. Arthur gave it to him. “If what you say is true, you have nothing to fear.” Bayard sheathed his sword and reached for the goblet. The King shook his head. “But if it is true I want the pleasure of killing you myself. He’ll drink it.”

“But if it has been poisoned, he’ll die,” Arthur protested, grabbing at Merlin’s arm and pulling her closer.

“Then he was telling the truth,” the King replied easily. Merlin shivered.

“And if the boy lives, as the goblet is not poisoned?” Bayard asked.

“Then you may punish him as you see fit.” Merlin did not even react. She knew that it was poisoned. Whatever had really happened to make it poisoned, that was the one thing she was certain of.

“Merlin, apologize,” Arthur ordered. She shook her head. “This is a mistake. I’ll drink it.”

“No! I’ll drink it.” Merlin took the goblet from the King. She raised it to Arthur and swallowed all of it down. She knew that everyone was moving around them. Gaius had said something in protest. Morgana, easily distinguishable from everyone else in her jewel bright gown, was much closer. At first, she felt fine. Her head hurt a little but nothing more. Had the whole thing been a trick? But why? Then she felt it take effect. Her heart seized and she reached out for Arthur, whose face went ashen.

“Merlin!” he screamed, reaching out to catch her. Everything went dark.

Arthur somehow caught Merlin and eased him slowly down to the ground. Everyone was crowding close, but thankfully their attention was on Merlin, not his trembling hands.

“Guards! Seize them!” his Father ordered. Arthur barely noticed. Merlin had come to warn them, to save his life, and now he was dying.

“We have to get him back to my chambers. Bring the goblet. I need to identify the poison,” Gaius demanded. Arthur managed to gather Merlin into his arms. The boy was too light, as though he was no heavier than a feather. Gwen snatched up the goblet and followed them out. Once they finally reached Gaius’ chambers, Arthur laid Merlin on the bed.

“Is he going to be alright?” Arthur demanded.

“He’s burning up,” Gaius muttered absently. That was not an answer. Gwen tried to demand a response as well. Arthur felt frozen with helplessness as Gaius examined the goblet. But then Gaius was telling him exactly what the poison was and what the antidote must be and where it was. Arthur looked at the book Gaius had. There was a creature of some sort on the same page.

“That’s not particularly friendly.”

“A Cockatrice,” Gaius explained. “It guards the forest. Its venom is potent. A single drop would mean certain death. Few who have crossed the Mountains of Isgaard in search of the Mortaeus flower have made it back alive.”

“Sounds like fun,” Arthur decided. He had to save Merlin.

“Arthur, it’s too dangerous,” Gaius protested.

“If I don’t go, what happens to Merlin?” Arthur countered.

Gaius answered reluctantly. “The Mortaeus induces a slow and painful death. He may hold out for four, maybe five days, but not for much longer. Eventually he will die.” Arthur nodded, turned and left. He would ride out to the Forest of Balor and get the flower. For Merlin.

Of course, his father was less agreeable. He insisted that Arthur could not risk his life for a serving boy. He forbade him to leave. Arthur returned to his room, bitterly, to decide if he was letting Merlin die or defying his father for his manservant. He understood that the kingdom must have an heir, that anything happening to him would put the whole kingdom in turmoil. But Merlin was the only reason Arthur had not drunk the poison himself. Why could they not save him?

Morgana strode in and Arthur knew what his decision was.

“I’m going, Morgana,” he promised. A genuine smile lit up her face.

“Good. Come back safe.”

“I’ll bring the antidote back,” Arthur swore. He took the sword off the table and ran down to the stables. Thankfully, he got a horse saddled and was riding over the drawbridge before the guards noticed him. Arthur rode hard and fast for the Forest of Balor, not stopping for more than a few moments together. Gaius had said that Merlin only had a handful of days left. He eventually found the forest and ended up walking his exhausted horse. Of course, everything could not go smoothly. There was a young woman in the forest and just as he was trying to ask after her wellbeing, the cockatrice Gaius had warned him about attacked. Arthur managed to dodge the attack and throw his sword into the beast. It fell to the ground, dead. He turned and the girl was backing away from him. Arthur let himself be distracted for a moment. The girl was bruised and said she had run away from her master and gotten lost. A moment later, when he told her he had to get something, she told him that she knew the area. Arthur did not have time to worry about why her story seemed to require further explanation to make any sense. She knew the flower he needed. He followed her into the caves. She led him straight to the flowers, of course growing on a sheer ledge on the other side of a narrow natural bridge. The girl incanted a spell as he started across the natural bridge. Arthur was livid. He managed to jump and catch the ledge on the other side to keep from falling to his death.

“I expected so much more,” she sneered.

“Who are you?” Arthur demanded.

“The last face you’ll ever see,” she taunted. Arthur could not believe her, but there was a giant spider, larger than his shield, large as an archery target maybe. It was heading for him. “It seems we have a visitor.” Arthur managed to draw his sword one handed and slay the over-size spider. “Very good. But he won't be the last. I'll let his friends finish you off, Arthur Pendragon. It's not your destiny to die at my hand.” The sorceress turned and left, taking the only light with her. Arthur could not die here, not even managing to save Merlin. This could not be how it ended. Suddenly there was a blue-white glowing orb above his head, illuminating the ledge.

“Come on, then! What are you waiting for?! Finish me off!” Arthur screamed at it, frustrated. But the light did not seem to be menacing. Rather it started to move up, lighting the way for him to climb back to the surface. But Arthur spotted the flowers and ignored the light and the spiders crawling towards him in favor of getting what he had come for. Arthur moved as far towards it as he could and stretched to his full length, finally managing to snag the flower on the third pass. He tucked it in the pouch at his waist and then followed the light up. As he climbed, just barely ahead of the spiders, his sword fell into the dark abyss below him. There was no time to mourn the loss or worry about how he would protect himself on the journey home. He just had to climb. The light stayed always at the perfect angle above him to illuminate the next handhold as he raced up to the top. By God’s mercy, he came up to an actual opening to the sky at the top of the sheer cliffside. Arthur managed to stumble back to his horse and rode back for Camelot. Though he was exhausted, it was already night again and his horse was well-rested. Arthur rode nearly straight through back to the castle.

As he came up to the drawbridge, however, his way was blocked. His father had ordered him arrested. Arthur was too exhausted to fight and he had lost his sword. He let them drag him down to the dungeons, shocked and dismayed. How could he give Gaius the flower to make the antidote from the dungeons? He had not survived a cockatrice, a sorceress and all those spiders just to lose Merlin because he was not free to move around the castle. Dammit.

“You disobeyed me,” his Father was furious.

“A man’s life was at stake!” Arthur protested. “Do not let Merlin die because of something I did. He’s saved my life twice now.”

“He’s only a servant.” Clearly his father was in no mood to see sense.

“He knew the danger in drinking from that goblet and if he hadn’t come rushing in, it would have been me on the floor. He saved my life!” His father turned in irritation. “There’s more, Father. There was a woman waiting for me where the flowers were. She was a sorceress. I do not think it was Bayard who tried to poison me.”

“Of course it was,” his Father snapped.

“Please, Gaius knows what to do with it,” Arthur begged, offering the flower to his father. To his surprise and relief, his father took it. “Do whatever you want to me, just make sure it gets to him.” His father crushed the flower in his hand and let it fall to the ground. Arthur felt himself scream but he was too horrified to even register it.

“You have to learn there is a right way and a wrong way of doing things,” his Father warned. “I’ll see you’re let out in a week and you can find yourself another servant.”

“This is the second time this man saved my life and his blood is on your hands!” Arthur screamed at his Father’s retreating back. This was not noble. This was wrong. Arthur sat down at the door to the cell, reaching for the flower. His arm was not quite long enough. Arthur twisted, forcing his shoulder through the gap between the bars. He must reach it. He eventually managed to get the tip of his finger to just reach the flower and carefully pulled it back within reach. He grabbed the flower and wrenched his shoulder, even trying carefully to get himself unstuck from the bars. Arthur paced and shouted at the guards and eventually ended up sitting morosely with his back against the stone wall. This was all his fault. He should never have let Merlin drink the wine for him. His father would have spared nothing to get the antidote for his own son.

“You have my apologies,” Bayard’s voice came from a few cells down. “I was clearly not careful enough with my belongings.”

“She was a powerful sorceress. I was lucky to escape from her with my life,” Arthur told him. “I’ve no doubt you did as much to safeguard the goblets as possible. There is little that can be done to safeguard against sorcery.”

“I suppose I may as well offer my condolences for your servant now. He was clearly very loyal to you.”

“Morgana may yet come down,” Arthur replied, mostly to himself. “Father is more lenient with her.” There was silence from Bayard. Arthur knew he had tipped his hand in regards to Merlin, but he had done that days ago, insisting Merlin not drink it, catching Merlin when he fell, carrying him to the physician’s chambers himself, riding out to get the antidote. Arthur wanted to cry, but he had to have hope that someone would come down and take the flower to Gaius for Merlin.

Finally, Gwen came down with food. Arthur pretended not to have any notice of her, but she was very fond of Merlin, perhaps even fancied him. He tucked the flower in amongst the food and then turned up his nose at it. Even if no more food came, at least Gwen had the flower. There was a ruckus at the stairs, guards shouting.

“Someone came for the flower?” Bayard asked.

“Yes,” Arthur answered. “I just hope it’s in time.”

“Have faith, boy,” he urged. “Your servant will be fine.” Arthur had to believe it, but he would worry until he had Merlin before him, hale and hearty once more.

Somehow Merlin knew that some time had passed, a light suddenly appeared in front of her, a woman standing before her.

“Go back, little one,” she whispered, a maiden, a mother, a crone, all standing in the same spot. “You still have much to do.”

Merlin opened her eyes, to see Gaius tightly embracing Gwen. “That's disgusting. You should be ashamed of yourself. You're old enough to be her grandfather.” They both turned to face her.

“Merlin, you’re alive,” Gaius smiled.

“No, I’m the ghost come back to haunt you,” Merlin retorted. Suddenly, Gwen swooped down and there were warm, salt-wet lips pressed against her own. Merlin did not respond, too shocked. After a moment, Gwen let go of her face and sat back.

“Oh, I’m so sorry! I thought you were dead.”

“It’s fine, Gwen,” Merlin reassured her. “More than fine if it means you aren’t taking up with Gaius. But, what happened? I drank the wine and that’s all I remember.”

“Well, you passed out,” Gwen explained. “Obviously. We brought you and the goblet back here. The King had Bayard and all his men thrown in the dungeon. Gaius figured out what the poison was and Prince Arthur rode out to get the antidote after the King forbade him to go. He’s in the dungeon himself now. I pretended that I’d been sent to bring his supper and he put the flower on the tray and I had to run back up here. Gaius said your heart stopped, but thankfully it didn’t and the antidote worked.”

“I think it did,” Merlin groaned. She was sore all over. “The Goddess herself told me to go back. At least, I would be willing to bet everything that it was the Goddess.”

“You saw the Goddess?” Gaius marveled.

“She told me to go back,” Merlin told him. Gaius looked thunderstruck. Gwen was still a little wavery, teary-eyed and lip trembling, staring at her. Merlin had this feeling that it was not only relief at her recovery that had made Gwen kiss her. Hopefully without Merlin encouraging anything more than friendliness, Gwen would set her cap for someone who loved her back soon.

Though Merlin was kept in Gaius’ chambers all the next day, she heard that Arthur had been released from the dungeons, thank the Goddess, and all of the Mercians were released as well. Gwen had gone back to serving Morgana, since she had apparently spent the last several days at Merlin’s sickbed, and therefore knew all of what had happened and she stopped in for a moment with Morgana to check on Merlin. Gaius had not stopped teasing Merlin about Gwen clearly setting her cap at “him” now that Merlin was clearly not going to die. Merlin was less amused. Apparently, someone had convinced the King that it had not been Bayard who had poisoned the goblet. It had probably been Cara who had poisoned it, whoever she really was. Her freedom with the given names of the royals had proven that she was no servant and she had certainly been more familiar with the halls of Camelot than any Mercian could be. Merlin felt foolish about the whole thing. Had she been a little more aware, and a little less excited about making a new friend, she might have prevented more of this misunderstanding.

“Still alive, then?” Arthur interrupted her dinner. Merlin turned and nodded, smiling at him.

“Yeah, just about. I understand I have you to thank for that.”

“Yeah, well, it was nothing. A half decent servant is hard to come by,” Arthur shrugged, making a strange expression. “I was only dropping by to make sure you're alright. I expect you to be back to work tomorrow.”

“Er, yes, of course, bright and early,” Merlin agreed. She would be strong enough to do the majority of her chores, at any rate and the ones she wasn’t strong enough for were the dogs and horses, which she could leave to the servants who were supposed to do them. Arthur was leaving. “Arthur! Thank you.”

Arthur smiled gently at her, “You too. Get some rest.” He left. Gaius said something about Arthur being a man of honor and Merlin casually agreed and was soon tucked into her bed, wondering if Gaius knew who Cara really was, because he had looked a little strange when he told her he thought that she had been the target for the poison all along.

The next morning, Merlin rose early and went to fetch Arthur’s breakfast, but the Steward’s tart niece had already gotten it, so Merlin just trudged up the stairs empty-handed and trying not to grumble. About half-way there, she ran in Arthur, in his sleep pants, rushing down the stairs in a panic.

“What’s happened?” Merlin asked.

“You…” Arthur stopped, grabbed her by the shoulders, stared intently at her, “You’re alright?”

“I’m fine,” Merlin replied. “I’m sorry I’m late, but I was told that Briallen had taken you your breakfast.”

“She did and I thought you’d gotten worse overnight,” Arthur admitted. “Come on, before someone sees me rushing about in a panic.” He put an arm around her shoulders and led her up the stairs towards his chambers. Merlin thought he was overreacting about the whole thing.

“I really don’t know why you panicked,” Merlin muttered. “You saw last night that I was fine.”

“And pale as a sheet,” Arthur retorted, herding her into his chambers. Merlin let him, clearly he had woken up in a strange mood and so long as the request was not too odd, she would just let him be a bit off. Arthur only sat down to eat once Merlin had been seated, and he did not even give her a chore list. She was to attend him and serve his meals, no mention of dogs or horses or laundry or cleaning. Merlin was not ungrateful for the respite. A day or two, if this strange mood held, of following Arthur around like a lost puppy with light chores would be a nice reprieve while she was still getting her strength back. She had spent three days on her back with a fever and she was feeling tired still but she was beyond ready to get out from under Gaius’ feet.

After breakfast, Arthur let her help him dress and then had her follow him to council. Normally, he wouldn’t have her at council, but the King had a servant attend him and Geoffrey had a servant attend him when he bothered to show up, so it would not raise too many eyebrows. It did not. No one even noticed her, except one of the guards who very quietly asked after her health and smiled when she told him she was feeling much better, only a little tired. Arthur turned his head every so often to check that she was still standing behind him, though she was unsure if he thought she would have somehow fallen ill or run away. Then it was time for dinner, which Arthur ate in his chambers, with Morgana. Morgana brought Gwen and both Merlin and Gwen got to sit down at Arthur’s table and eat dinner with Arthur and Morgana. Gwen looked very uncomfortable with the situation, but Merlin was grateful for the reprieve after nearly four hours on her feet during council. Morgana looked more than a little amused by Arthur insisting on Merlin finishing her meat and water and frowning at how much was left on her plate.

After dinner, Arthur let her help him into his training clothes, but he insisted on getting Morgana’s awning that she used on picnics to protect her complexion before they went down to the fields. Merlin thought she might die of embarrassment, but Sir Leon, Sir Bors, and Sir Ewan all helped Arthur stake the awning down next to the field without a word of complaint and they set the bucket of water to refill the waterskins next to her in the shade it provided. None of the knights or squires mocked her about being settled in the shade like a child, and Geraint and Galahad came over and asked to sit in the shade with her. They both told her that she had been very brave to save Arthur’s life by interrupting the peace talks and drinking the poisoned wine. Apparently, all of the knights had been talking about how brave and loyal she was, and how it showed Arthur’s good character and true nobility that he had defied the King to get the antidote for her. The guards had made sure that the call was not raised until Arthur was crossing the drawbridge and then did not chase him very far, because they had thought it was wrong of the King to forbid anyone to get the antidote for someone who drank poison to save the prince. Merlin was more than grateful for the chatty company, since it kept her mind off how embarrassing it was that Arthur had hunted down Morgana’s awning for her to use when it was barely spring. After training was over, Arthur ordered Geraint and Galahad to take the awning down and put it back in the storage room it came from. Merlin made a sympathetic expression at them, but neither one seemed upset about it.

“Come on,” Arthur urged, leading Merlin back up to his chambers. Merlin was allowed to go down to the kitchens to fetch his supper only after she had assured him three times that she felt absolutely fine and had been drinking plenty of water all day. He was like a new mother with a babe just learning to walk. Merlin, of course, was perfectly fine. She went down to the kitchens, got his supper on a tray, and climbed the stairs up to Arthur’s chambers with no problem.

“See, here I am, no problems,” Merlin announced as she let herself in. The Head Guard was standing next to Arthur and he ducked his head, probably to hide a laugh, but Arthur did not even seem to notice, looking pleased that Merlin had the strength to climb stairs after sitting in the shade all afternoon like a child. It was a little ridiculous.

“Well, I’ll leave you to your supper, your highness,” the Head Guard bowed. Arthur nodded in dismissal. “And may I say we’re all pleased to see you up and about again, Merlin. It was a very brave thing you did, drinking the poison yourself.”

“Thank you,” Merlin mumbled awkwardly, crossing the room to put the supper tray on the table. The Head Guard bowed out of the room. Merlin absently thought she should probably get his name soon.

“Sit, Merlin,” Arthur ordered, pushing the papers he had been looking over out of the way. “You’re eating too.” Merlin sat down, not arguing as Arthur portioned food off for her too.

“I really am fine, Arthur,” Merlin murmured in vain protest. He looked over at her and took a deep breath.

“You drank poison, Merlin. You were dying. I don’t think it’s uncalled for to worry that only two days later you were not up to strenuous chores.”

“Not that I’m not grateful for not mucking out the stables, or hauling bath water, but this is a little much. I’m perfectly well, just still a little more easily tired. I am fine. I will continue to be fine. There is no need for hovering.”

“I’m not trying to insult you,” Arthur mumbled, ducking his head as though embarrassed. “I’m just concerned. That poison was meant for me and you drank it and nearly died. I could not bear to repay a life death with you getting ill because I overworked you too quickly.” Oh. This was an honor thing.

“I can understand that,” Merlin conceded. They chatted a little about the castle gossip, Morgana’s health, and then Merlin banked up the fire against the chill and went to bed early.


	6. Hello Heartbreaker

The next morning, Merlin followed Arthur to an audience with some panicked villagers from some small village called Greenswood about a day’s ride from the citadel, where they asked the King to send some knights to slay some creature that flew about and ate only human flesh. The King was not too fussed about the incident, insisting that he could not send his knights to take care of every animal attack. Clearly, he thought they were exaggerating. Arthur was disturbed by the villagers, recognizing that their panic was real. Morgana, who was also sitting in on the audience, went white as a sheet at their description of a creature both like a giant hawk and a giant cat. Gwen had to support her as she left the room. Arthur was still keeping Merlin close with light chores, but it was beginning to chafe. Hopefully Arthur would feel better about her health soon.

Thankfully, that afternoon, Gaius asked Arthur if Merlin could spend the following morning gathering herbs and Arthur agreed. She would get to spend the morning out of doors and away from Arthur’s hovering. Admittedly, he was better that day, not fetching out the awning during training. Merlin still sat for the duration of the training, but she got to enjoy the early spring sunlight. Then she was allowed to do his laundry and he let her haul a bath up. It seemed to be a sort of test, which she passed. Arthur kept her later that night and sent her to return some books and papers to Geoffrey before she could go to bed.

Merlin slept in and took her time going to the woods. Gaius did not have an urgent need for the mushrooms he had sent her after. Some of them were for him to eat, not for healing, after all. It was a nice morning, almost like she was back in Ealdor, gathering mushrooms before the winter, except the weather was a little fairer. Unfortunately, just as she was starting to think about heading back to the citadel, par for her luck recently, she heard a terrifying shrieking sound. Merlin whirled around and saw the creature the villagers had described. She let out a high pitched shriek and turned to flee. As she was no longer easy on her feet, Merlin of course tripped on a root and fell to the ground, waiting for death. It didn’t come. Instead there was a strange clanging noise and a voice.

“Run! run!” a man demanded, grabbing at her sleeve and pulling. Merlin scrambled to her feet and stumbled along with him, eventually getting her feet under herself and running. After a moment, there was a fallen tree, thick and blocking the path. They both climbed over the tree and plastered themselves to the ground on the side away from the creature. Merlin eventually got the courage to look up only to see the creature flying away in search of easier prey.

“It’s gone,” she breathed in relief, before turning to the man. He was tall, with pleasing features and long, curling hair. “You saved my life. I’m Merlin.” She stuck her hand out.

“I’m Lancelot,” he shook hands with her. His voice was a pleasing pitch as well. Merlin wondered if he sang. Then she saw that he was injured.

“Oh, we better hurry to the castle. You got scratched.” Lancelot looked down and winced, grabbing at the wound on his hip. Merlin helped him to his feet and half dragged him back to the castle, mushrooms all forgotten somewhere far behind her. She discovered upon her return that she now had the whole day off, because Arthur had ridden off with his father to investigate another village that had been attacked by something or someone. Lancelot passed out soon after she got him to Gaius, so she spent the afternoon taking care of Gaius’ usual errands while he tended to Lancelot. Though Lancelot had not woken by that evening, his fever had at least gone down. Arthur returned late and Merlin had to report to him only for him to immediately dismiss her again. Merlin consciously put aside her irritation and just went back to her bed to get as much sleep as possible before she had to fetch his breakfast.

Arthur had training in the morning and was dining with his father for dinner, where she was certainly neither wanted nor needed, and Merlin hurried through the few chores he gave her so she could get back to Lancelot. He was awake and feeling much improved when she walked in. He greeted her happily and Merlin settled in to chat for a while. When he said that it was his life’s goal to be a knight, Merlin discovered a way to repay him for saving her. She would speak to Arthur for him and he would pass the test to become a knight, she was certain. She had seen a little of his sword work from the ground before he lost his grip and he rivalled Arthur in ability.

Thankfully, Arthur was complaining about some nobleman who had not passed the test that afternoon when she was following him in an impromptu patrol around the lower town, mostly an excuse for him to walk off his irritation.

“I think I can help with that,” Merlin told him.

“You, Merlin? You haven’t the faintest idea what it takes to be a knight,” he scoffed. Merlin rolled her eyes.

“No, not me. But I do know someone who does.”

“Yeah?” Arthur actually turned to meet her gaze and show she had his attention.

“He saved my life.”

“Well, that’s blowing it for starters,” Arthur teased, smirking at her. Merlin frowned at him.

“No, Arthur, he’s really good. I promise.”

“Merlin, you’re forgetting the First Code of the knights of Camelot.” Merlin had no idea what he was on about. Arthur took pity rather than mocking her. “Only those of noble blood can serve as knights. Unless your friend is somehow a nobleman, he can’t be considered.”

“Oh, he is a nobleman,” Merlin lied. Arthur did not believe her.

“Is he?” he asked.

“Absolutely,” Merlin told him. Arthur rolled his eyes.

“Very well, Merlin. Bring him to the training grounds tomorrow. But he needs a seal of nobility.” Merlin tried not to wince but Arthur made a soft laughing noise and she knew he knew that Lancelot was not noble. But he fought well and Arthur valued that more. So long as she could give him that chance, Arthur would not question him. Merlin would just have to make Lancelot a seal of nobility.

She ducked back into Gaius’ chambers once they got back to the castle and Arthur waved off her attempts at an excuse, making that soft laughing sound again. She ignored it.  
“Did you speak to him?” Lancelot asked.

“Yes, he said to have you come to training in the morning.” Merlin paused. “I don’t suppose you just happen to be a nobleman?”

“A nobleman? No, obviously not,” Lancelot chuckled. He had a nice laugh too. Had this man no faults?

“Alright, I’ll get you a seal then. Apparently there’s some code thing that you have to be a nobleman to be a knight. But Arthur really couldn’t care less so long as you can fight and I’m sure you can knock him on his ass.”

“Merlin!” Gaius protested. Honestly, she had forgotten he was there.

“You’ll get me a seal?”

“Yes,” Merlin nodded. “Then you can at least try and see if your merit is good enough or not.”

“Uther created the knights to protect this kingdom from those who wished to destroy it. He knew he would have to trust each of his knights with his life. So he chose them from the families that had sworn allegiance to him: the nobility,” Gaius was still protesting.

“Ignore him,” Merlin advised. “Now, I’ve got to go fetch some berries from the kitchens for his highness, so I’ll see you later.” She rushed back out, feeling only a little guilty about leaving Lancelot to Gaius’ disapproving eyebrow. She took Arthur his snack, had to stop and straighten up the chambers and Arthur was unusually quiet for upwards of an hour until he broke the silence in the room.

“So, I hear you’ve got someone staying with you,” Arthur finally said.

“Um, is that a problem?” Merlin replied. What had that to do with anything with Arthur?

“No, of course not,” Arthur replied. “I was just surprised you hadn’t asked for time off to visit with them.” Oh.

“Well, I didn’t know to expect anyone,” Merlin explained. “Can’t expect to get the day off after it’s already started. Plus, I ended up with most of the day off yesterday, since you had to ride out with the King to investigate that village that got attacked.”

“That’s true,” Arthur agreed. “So, who’s the nobleman you’re giving me tomorrow?” He definitely knew. He positively sneered the word nobleman.

“His name is Lancelot,” Merlin replied.

“Ah,” Arthur nodded, clearly trying not to laugh. “But he’s a good warrior?”

“He said he’s been training since he was quite young. There was a raider attack and he was of course too young to do anything and never wanted to have to sit and watch again.”

“I can certainly understand that sentiment,” Arthur breathed. “So long as he fights well, I’ll give him the same chance as everyone else.”

“Thank you, Arthur!” Merlin beamed at him.

“Alright, go get my supper and then you’re dismissed,” Arthur said with a laugh. “And remember that your nobleman friend’s seal better be flawless.”

“It will be,” Merlin agreed before running off to fetch his supper. Arthur was lovely, giving her time to get the seal together without losing sleep.

Of course, Geoffrey was eyeing her suspiciously when she got to the library. He was Gaius’ friend and she knew Gaius thought she was a troublemaker. But he did not interfere while she found the right book, with the seals of all the noble families. Merlin decided that Northumbria was far enough away that hopefully no one would have any reason to question the seal. She copied the seal onto a blank piece of parchment Arthur had pretended not to see her squirrel away under her tunic when she brought him his supper. Thankfully, she had the seal rolled up in her hand when Geoffrey wandered over and she just handed the book back to him with a smile, hurrying back to Gaius’ chambers before she got into trouble.

“Ta-da!” Merlin unrolled the seal to show Lancelot. “I give you Lancelot, fifth son of Lord Eldred of Northumbria. We’ll have to get you some armor in the morning, but oh! Gwen will help with that.”

“I don’t want to lie,” Lancelot sighed.

“I understand,” Merlin murmured. She was not sure she did, but that was the thing to say. “But look, Arthur knows full well that I don’t know any noblemen. You aren’t really lying to him, and he’s in charge of the knights. This way you can at least try to reach your dream.”

“That’s true. The prince knows the truth?” Lancelot was clearly wavering. He reached out and took the seal. “He won’t be angry, even if I am discovered?”

“I don’t see why you would be discovered. That forgery is impeccable,” Merlin grumbled. “But no, Arthur won’t be angry. He’s been laughing at me all day about my nobleman friend.”

“Okay,” Lancelot nodded. “So long as I’m not really lying.”

“Good!” Merlin grinned. “I’ll go talk to Gwen. She’s the daughter of a blacksmith in the village. She can get you some armor quickly.”

Merlin rushed off and Gwen ended up insisting that Merlin bring Lancelot down to her house in the village for measurements right away. Morgana giggled at both of them, not having heard what Merlin had asked and assured Gwen that of course she could have the evening off, winking at Merlin. They both blushed at Morgana’s assumption, but hurried off together, Merlin telling Gwen about how Lancelot had rescued her from the griffin and she was trying to repay him. They got down to the courtyard and Gwen rushed off home while Merlin went to fetch Lancelot.

Soon they were all three in Gwen’s home and she was taking Lancelot’s measurements while he blushed. Clearly Lancelot was taken with Gwen. Mayhap Merlin could try to encourage that flirtation and Gwen might transfer her affections to Lancelot, who at least appeared to return them. Merlin had no aim to hurt Gwen, but if Gwen did not soon recognize that Merlin was not going to return her affections, it would be all too easy to upset her without even being less than friendly. As it was, Gwen blushed as Lancelot called her a lady and Merlin quietly hoped that something might come of it. A career knight like Lancelot would be would certainly not be too high or too low for the handmaiden to the King’s Ward. After they were done with the measurements and Gwen had shooed them out so she could put together a tunic with the proper crest on it, as well as having her father get the armor together, Lancelot started casually asking after Gwen.

“She seems lovely, Guinevere,” he commented.

“Oh, yeah,” Merlin agreed. “Yeah, she really is. And the best seamstress in Camelot, I promise.”

“Are… you two…?” Lancelot clearly did not how to ask what he wanted to know: did they have an understanding.

“Oh no,” Merlin shook her head. “We’re just friends. But I could put in a good word for you…?” Lancelot blushed at her teasing and adamantly shook his head. She would put in a few good words. She had already told Gwen that he had rescued her and been injured in the fight, which proved him to be a good man. Lancelot was pleasing to look at; he spoke well and respectfully. There was nothing for Gwen to take offense with.

The next morning, Merlin sent Lancelot down to Gwen while she fetched Arthur’s breakfast and by the time she joined them, they were clearly flirting with each other. Merlin kept quiet and let them, until Lancelot was fully outfitted and they needed to get up to the training grounds. Gwen followed them up and Merlin purposefully did not ask if Morgana knew where she was. Finally, Arthur dismissed the knights he was sparring with. Merlin pushed Lancelot in his direction, pressing the seal into his hand. Lancelot squared his shoulders and headed over. Arthur took the seal as Lancelot bowed too low, nodded, and hit him in the shoulder, knocking him to the ground. He started to walk off. Merlin was about to give him a piece of her mind when Lancelot spoke.

“I’m ready now, Sire.” Gwen looked as impressed as Merlin felt.

“You are, are you? You can start by mucking out the stables.” Merlin might still give him a piece of her mind. Arthur was such an ass. The other knights were laughing, like it was amusing that Arthur had no manners. When Lancelot turned uncertainly to Merlin, she gave him two thumbs up. Arthur had done the same thing to her when he had first taken her on and only last week he had defied his father to get the antidote for her. How he was going to explain this behavior, though, Merlin had no idea.

However, for the rest of the day and the day after, Arthur had Lancelot do all sorts of menial labor chores. Lancelot did it without complaint and with good grace, thankfully. Merlin was outraged. The knights did not seem to think anything was at all out of the ordinary, despite the fact this was clearly not the usual process for knights. It was bewildering, especially since none of them thought that Lancelot was a commoner. They all gave him due deference and sympathetic glances behind Arthur’s back. Merlin had no explanation for it at all. On the third morning, Arthur finally gave Lancelot a chance to prove himself, and by that afternoon, Lancelot was joining Arthur and the other knights on the training field.

Of course, the day after that the King realized that the creature that had attacked Merlin days ago was near Camelot, because a woman from the village just outside the citadel came into the castle, injured and seeking treatment from Gaius. So the knights went on the defensive. Lancelot assured Arthur that he wanted to serve and Arthur told him that he would have his test first thing the next day so he would be a knight when the creature arrived. Lancelot, of course, passed the test. He was skilled with a sword and had good stamina. Gwen had come and watched his test, nervous for him. Merlin was pleased. Gwen and Lancelot would be quite adorable together.

Lancelot was knighted by the King that same night and they held a feast in his honor for supper. Merlin ended up having to help Lancelot into his armor and then go help Arthur into his armor as well. Despite how Arthur had treated Lancelot before, they ended up settling down next to one another during the celebrations and chatting. Merlin, of course, could not sit with them and was standing by the wall with Gwen, teasing her about Lancelot.

“You know what? I think our Sir Lancelot might have eyes for you, Gwen.”

“Don’t be silly,” Gwen protested, but she blushed and glanced shyly in his direction. They caught each other’s eyes and both quickly looked away.

“What? So what if he did?” Merlin asked. “Would that really be so bad?”

Gwen sighed softly at her. Merlin ignored it. “He’s not really my type.” Merlin stifled a sigh herself.

“Oh, well, there’s a surprise,” she teased. “Sometimes, Guinevere, my lady, I wonder if you’d know what your type was if he was standing right before you.” Gwen unfortunately sighed wistfully at her and Merlin wanted to shake her. Lancelot would clearly adore her and he was obviously a good man who would honor her and keep her in the style she was accustomed to, or better.

“You’re probably right,” Gwen grumbled. Merlin grabbed a drink from a passing servant and took a big swallow.

“So, come on, for the sake of argument, if you had to: Arthur or Lancelot?” Merlin already knew the answer but was hoping Gwen would admit to it.

“But I don’t have to and I never will,” she countered. Merlin wanted to shake her some more. Maybe they should go bother Morgana, get some intelligent conversation.

“Gwen, you are absolutely no fun at all,” Merlin groused. Thankfully, Arthur pounded on the table and interrupted everyone’s conversation to toast Lancelot. The celebrations were lovely and no one was anticipating what happened the next morning, or they would not have drunk half so much ale.

Guards stormed into Gaius’ chambers and dragged Lancelot off with the only explanation being “King’s orders.” Merlin ran after them. They ended up in the council chambers, as usual, the King and Geoffrey standing at the front of the gathered crowd. Arthur was standing among the crowd, looking irritated and a little confused.

“Tell him what you told me,” the King ordered.

Geoffrey answered him, “These credentials are faked. The seal itself is faultless, forgery of the highest possible standard, but a forgery it must be. There is no record of the fifth son of Lord Eldred of Northumbria. Therefore he...”

“Lied!” the King cut him off. “Do you deny it?” Merlin held her breath. Please, Lancelot. Deny it.

“No, Sire.” Lancelot was far too noble. Arthur looked as disappointed as Merlin felt. He wanted competent men to serve with him, to keep up the standard the knights of Camelot set as the best in Albion.

The King had no such compunctions. “You've broken the First Code of Camelot. You've brought shame upon yourself and upon us. You are not worthy of the knighthood bestowed upon you. You never were. And you never will be. Get him out of my sight.” The guards obediently led him out of the room. Lancelot, of course, was too noble to fight them.

“Sire,” Arthur spoke up, despite the gathered crowd. His father looked surprised at him.

“Do you contest my judgment?” the King dared him to say so.

“His deception is inexcusable, of course. But I believe his intentions were pure enough. He only wished to serve and could not truly change the circumstances of his birth to allow him to serve. He was a skilled swordsman, especially if he was not a nobleman.”

“The First Code is a sacred bond of trust. It is what binds the knights together. How can you trust a man who's lied to you?” the King protested, thinking he had played the best card. Arthur, of course, could not tell his father that Lancelot had never truly lied to him as he had known from the beginning that he was not noble, so he said nothing and bowed his head. The assembled crowd was dismissed. Merlin went up to Arthur, who winced a little at seeing her.

“I am sorry for your friend,” he murmured, just for her ears.

“I am sorry you lost the first talented knight to arrive since last fall,” Merlin countered. He had complained about it every time a nobleman arrived and could not pass the test. Honestly, Merlin had to agree that if they could not stay on their feet for a full minute that they had no business being a knight. She had managed more than that each time Arthur had sparred with her, and when he had attacked her with the mace.

“He was an expert swordsman, especially for a commoner who must have had to earn his food as well, and swords are expensive,” Arthur sighed heavily. “I do wish Father wasn’t so insistent. Plenty of commoners are good men and some of them have as much natural talent with a sword as the noblemen do. Well, come on, you’ve got chores to do before you can go sympathize with your friend.” Merlin trailed behind Arthur up to his room and straightened up, cleaned the hearth, changed the rushes, made the bed, took the breakfast dishes down, and fetched some papers from the Steward regarding something about the servants that had to be dealt with. Merlin only skimmed it far enough to realize that it was the servants in charge of the hunting hounds and no one she knew before rolling it back up and delivering it promptly. Arthur did not need her dogging his footsteps to take care of whatever the issue was, so he told her to go talk to Lancelot if she wanted and then to do the laundry. Of course, Merlin went rushing down to Lancelot. The laundry could wait.

“I don't know what to say to you, Lancelot,” she murmured. This had only happened because Merlin had forged the seal for him.

“You're not to blame,” he assured her, as though reading her mind.

“Yes, I am, at least partially. I pushed you to lie.”

“The choice was mine, Merlin. I could have told you to burn the scroll with the forged seal and taken my chances elsewhere. My punishment is mine to bear, and mine to bear alone.”

“I wish there was something I could do, though,” Merlin told him. Lancelot smiled at her.

“There is: you can stop blaming yourself.” That really was not the point and he knew it. But Merlin gave him a bright smile.

“Alright, I won’t blame myself. Unfortunately, I have to get back. Arthur said I could come speak to you but I have to do his laundry too.” Merlin sighed and started to leave. “Oh! Do you want me to say anything to Gwen?”

“Oh, um…” Lancelot sighed. “I have no idea of what I could say to her.”

“I will say you asked after her, then? That’s natural enough, is it not?”

“Yes,” Lancelot nodded. “She is well, is she not?”

“Gwen is fine,” Merlin assured him. She had passed her in the corridor with no time to talk but Gwen had smiled at her and waved and she had looked perfectly well. “She is sympathetic to you, I am sure. Arthur kept me running about all morning long, so I have not spoken to her today, but Gwen has been growing fond of you, I think. I should tell you that Arthur told the King that he regretted your not being able to stay in front of everyone.”

“That was over generous of him.”

“Well, he has been complaining about the lack of good knights available with the last five noblemen who have not passed his test.”

“Not that I wish to run you off, but did you not say that you had laundry to do? I don’t wish to get you in trouble.” Lancelot was too noble.

“Yes, I do,” Merlin sighed. “I will visit again.”

“Thank you,” Lancelot smiled bravely at her. Merlin reluctantly left, heading back up to Arthur’s chambers to gather up his laundry. She was a little quieter than usual as she went about her chores that afternoon, but Arthur did not tease her about it. He asked after Lancelot and she assured him that Lancelot was taking his punishment with courage and good grace.

“I will do what I can for him,” Arthur promised. “He is a good and noble man. I will not have him languish in the dungeons.”

“Thank you, Arthur.” He dismissed her early that evening, after she brought his supper. Merlin went back to Gaius’ chambers to find him researching the creature that had attacked her, in a book of mythological creatures. He soon identified it as a griffin.

Of course, everything could not stay quiet for long, not with this griffin wandering around, and it decided to attack the citadel that night. Arthur managed to drive it off with a torch after it broke his spear without being at all hurt itself. Gaius went and told the King that it was a creature born of magic and magic must be used to kill it. Arthur believed him, but the King brushed Gaius’ warning off.

Merlin later discovered that while she and Gaius were trying to find a viable method of killing a griffin that Arthur made good on his promise to her. He got a horse saddled and went down to the dungeons and released Lancelot, telling him of the griffin attack and ordering him to leave the citadel for his own safety. She also later discovered that he went to Gwen for armor and weapons to ride out after Arthur, quite impressing Gwen with his loyalty to his duty and causing her to ask him to not go. Thank goodness Gwen had rushed in and told her that Lancelot was riding out after them, as it gave her a way there and back. Lancelot tried to protest, but Merlin would hear none of it. She was not hardly going to run up against the griffin with a dagger. She would stay back and enchant the spear, that was all. She was not even on her own horse, but rather sharing the one Arthur had leant to Lancelot, his stallion.

By the time they caught up, all the knights were on the ground, unconscious. Thankfully, though they were all wounded, none of the wounds were yet fatal. Merlin could feel life in them. She was actually selfishly glad they were all senseless, as she knew Lancelot would be too noble to ever betray her secret if he heard her enchant his spear. Arthur would have been torn by his loyalty to his Father and the laws of the kingdom and the rest of the knights would have turned her over to the king without a second thought. She was only a servant, after all.

Merlin had slipped off the horse and Lancelot squared off with the griffin, like it was a joust. He raised his spear into position. Merlin murmured the spell. Nothing happened. Lancelot reared the horse and she said the spell again. Still nothing. Merlin gave up stealth and put the full force of her power into her voice as she incanted the spell. The spear glowed blue with magic and Lancelot struck true. The griffin fell with a death cry. The noise woke Arthur, and the other knights began to stir. Merlin quickly secreted herself behind a tree, knowing Lancelot would not betray her.

Arthur, of course, added up the no longer magical spear in front of him, a dead griffin and Lancelot in full battle regalia in front of him and rightly assumed that Lancelot had followed him out and attacked the griffin after it had defeated them and had slain it. He thanked him heartily. Lancelot, unsurprisingly, was mildly uncomfortable with the gratitude, knowing Merlin had aided him with magic. Merlin’s thanks and gratitude came later from Gaius, once she had hurried back into the citadel and made her way to his chambers. Of course, once she had collected herself, she went down to the council chambers. Arthur, being the kind of honorable man he was when he wasn’t in prat mood, would have brought Lancelot back to tell the King of his heroics and demand that he be honored. The King would not be pleased with this whole situation. Therefore, she had better go and check on both Arthur and Lancelot.

When Merlin arrived, the King and Arthur were shouting at one another behind closed doors. Merlin heard Arthur shout “The code is wrong!” and his father shouted back something mostly incoherent with “Trust and Respect!” somewhere in it.

“They’ll restore your knighthood,” Merlin decided. “Of course they will. Arthur will settle for nothing else. You killed the griffin.” Lancelot gave her a look. Merlin silently pleaded with him.

“I will never breathe your secret to another soul but I’m neither blind nor deaf,” he retorted. Merlin flushed a little at the implications.

“I knew I could trust you,” she told him. Lancelot blushed.

“I cannot take credit for what I did not do, though,” he protested.

“But you did. I could not have thrown that spear.” Lancelot was too noble.

“No. I can stomach no more lies, no more deceit,” he decided. He squared his shoulders, turned and somehow burst into the council chambers. Merlin looked on in shock. The King, of course, had him immediately restrained. “Let me speak!” he begged.

“I will hear him,” the King allowed. Merlin noticed Arthur looked as taken aback as she felt.

“Thank you, Sire,” Lancelot bowed to the King. “I have merely come to bid you both farewell.”

“What is this, Lancelot?” Arthur demanded, looking as outraged about the possibility of Lancelot not being honored for his heroics as Merlin had expected.

But Lancelot was nothing if not firm in his decisions, “I lied to you both and now there is conflict between you. I cannot bear that burden, as you should not bear mine. I must start again, far from here. Then maybe one day fate shall grant me another chance to prove myself a worthy knight of Camelot, if you will allow me after causing familial strife.”

“Lancelot, you’ve already more than proven your worth,” Arthur protested. Merlin had to agree with Arthur, but she knew that Lancelot would not be dissuaded from his chosen course of action.

“Then allow me to prove it to myself,” he countered. Arthur sighed, but agreed. Merlin knew that a sense of inadequacy despite external approbation was not something Arthur was at all unfamiliar with. It was often enough the cause for his prat moods. The King thought that Lancelot was quite right on all counts.

“So there is no confusion, you are pardoned in light of your heroics,” he announced. Lancelot thanked him, bowed to both King and Prince and then took his leave. Merlin and Arthur exchanged looks of exasperation.

“I don’t suppose you can talk him out of this?” Arthur asked. “He is as skilled as any of my knights.”

“No,” Merlin shook her head. “Lancelot has a very strict moral code. He has decided this is the most honorable path and so he will take it. I was honestly shocked he would pretend to be a nobleman after I told him about the First Code.”

“You should have informed someone,” the King chided her, “At least you could have told Arthur, if you knew he was lying.”

“Father, to be honest, I knew he was not a nobleman,” Arthur answered for her. “Merlin asked me to consider Lancelot before he knew about the First Code declaring that only noblemen can apply to become knights. I knew that it was very unlikely he truly was noble, if he was friends with my servant and had not immediately presented himself when he arrived. But I was frustrated because Grummunds had just failed the test so badly and Lancelot was willing to work and had good grace when humiliated and then he was skilled with a sword as well.”

“Arthur, this is why you must follow the rules. They were not made up wily-nily to frustrate. They keep the kingdom in order and peace. You would not be so disappointed now if you had simply turned him away from the beginning.”

“I understand, Father,” Arthur bowed to him. The King dismissed him with a nod and Merlin followed him out of the room. “I really wish he would have stayed.”

“Me too,” Merlin agreed. “He would have been a really good knight and I think he could have made Gwen happy.”

“Were you matchmaking?” Arthur asked incredulously, smiling at her. Merlin nodded and shrugged.

“Well, I am fairly certain that Gwen fancies me and I don’t reciprocate her affections, so I was hoping to turn her attention to someone who would,” she explained. Arthur nodded.

“That is always an awkward situation,” he agreed. “Lancelot is a good and noble man, so you could have had no scruples for her sake there. I know you are good friends with Gwen.”

“Yes,” Merlin agreed. “It is a great misfortune for all of us that Lancelot is leaving."

Lancelot rode out at first light and Merlin and Gaius watched him leave from the ramparts. Merlin imagined that Gwen was probably watching from Morgana’s window and it would not surprise her if Arthur was awake, pretending that it was coincidence when she finally got down with his breakfast.


	7. Revenge is Deadly

Merlin had been hoping for a reprieve after the griffin and the distress around Lancelot’s knighthood and imprisonment, especially with the rain that came pouring down a mere hour after he left and simply would not cease. But a mere three mornings after Lancelot left into self-imposed exile, Gwen came rushing into Gaius’ chambers in an absolute panic. The weather may have cleared, but it was not a good omen. No matter what Gwen did, Morgana would not wake. She had been in perfect health the night before and Gwen was extremely flustered about the whole thing. Gaius went straight to Morgana’s chambers while Merlin rushed off to tell Arthur, who of course immediately told his father. Soon they were all gathered in Morgana’s chambers. Merlin could see that Gaius was stumped and she understood why: there did not appear to be any cause for her continued deep sleep. Merlin wondered if Morgana had inherited her mother’s gift of Sight and had somehow done this to herself. Merlin had never had the gift for visions herself, but she knew that they could sometimes send the Seer into a trance-state from which they would not be woken. Admittedly, the trance-state usually looked more frightening than sleep, the Seer sitting up with open eyes but unmoving as though in death, but Morgana had to know better than to do something even the King could not attribute to anything but magic. It was cruel to poor Gwen if Morgana had done this to herself though. Gwen was flying between emotions every other moment: guilt, frustration, horror, sadness, worry.

Gaius, as anticipated, declined Merlin’s offer to try a magical remedy. He insisted that the illness was unrelated to magic and must be curable by mundane means. Merlin decided to trust him for the moment. He was a skilled physician and even if she was right, Morgana would be in little danger remaining in the trance-state for a day or two and would likely rouse herself sooner rather than later. Of course, that did not keep her from worrying when Gaius had still not found a cause, much less a cure, by that evening. Arthur was equally distressed, though a trifle more composed than Merlin.

However, when Gaius still had nothing the next morning, and Morgana was still soundly asleep, Arthur begged his father to call in the charlatan claiming to have a remedy to cure all ills. Merlin knew that the only thing that could cure all ills was magic, and even then one had to know the right ritual or spell. Surely the man was not so brazen as to be planning to use magic. There was a darker possibility: perhaps somehow the man had caused this and therefore knew exactly how to undo what he had done.

The man, Edwin Muirden, with a fire scar across half his face certainly had magic. Merlin knew the moment he got near. But he also had a sort of sinister air about him and she was not sure what to attribute it to when he insisted they all leave the room before he cured Morgana and then shouted Gwen out. Obviously he could not do magic in front of anyone, but surely if he was only trying to do all he could to help people, she would not feel this grating feeling when he got too close. He called them back in and Morgana was sitting up, looking none the worse for her trial. Somehow, that did not make Merlin feel any better about the man, though it clearly was enough for Arthur and the King. The King was crowing about rewards and Arthur was beaming. Merlin kept quiet but she was not at all comfortable with the situation.

She kept quiet as Edwin was feted and given a reward.

She kept quiet as Gwen gushed on about how grateful she was that Morgana was cured.

She kept quiet as Gaius snuck around, clearly no more trusting of Edwin than she was. She kept quiet as he told her to do as Edwin asked.

She kept quiet as Edwin flaunted his magic in front of her and offered to instruct her like she had not grown up in Ealdor, a magical center still held over from when the Old Religion had held full sway.

She even kept quiet when he flaunted his damn beetles in front of her like she was stupid enough to think that they had not been equally the problem as the solution to Morgana’s “illness”.

She kept quiet until Arthur told her that Edwin had been given permission to go through Gaius’ medical records because he claimed that Morgana’s nightmares had been symptoms of her illness.

“Are you addled?” she asked. Arthur startled, looking over at her. “How long has Gaius been treating Morgana for nightmares?” she asked.

“Since Morgana arrived after her father’s death,” Arthur admitted.

“Yes, and they weren’t a new problem then, were they?”

“No,” Arthur admitted reluctantly.

“So, then, somehow this was a symptom of this illness but she’s had it her entire life and it has never once manifested before now and his only explanation for her recovery is some sort of potion that he claims can cure all ills but he won’t disclose the ingredients? You don’t find this at all suspicious?”

“What are you accusing him of?” Arthur asked.

“Nothing, really,” Merlin sighed. “I’ve no firm idea. But he just doesn’t add up. I don’t trust him.”

“Well, I do,” Arthur replied. “Trust me.”

“I always do,” Merlin replied absently, distracted by Edwin wandering by with a sinister smirk on his face. When Arthur caught her attention again, he was staring at her wonderingly. “What?”

“Nothing,” Arthur shook his head at her, but he was smiling fondly at her.

Merlin wished she had not kept quiet the next morning when Gaius was cast out of his position and chambers. But Gaius assured her that things would work themselves out. He would not go far and Edwin would make his move soon and then she must make certain he was exposed if Edwin did not make a public spectacle. It grated at her. This was wrong. Thankfully, she discovered Morgana, at least, thought that this was as ill done as she did. Arthur felt very awkward about the whole matter but was completely taken in by Edwin and believed that Gaius’ work had been riddled with errors. Merlin almost could not bear to look at him for how angry she was with the situation and his naivety.

Thankfully for her nerves, Edwin made his move that evening. He drugged the king and did the same beetle trick he had done to Morgana. Merlin was going about her chores when Arthur came running by in rare form, shouting that the King had been stricken with the same illness as Morgana and that Edwin must be found. Merlin immediately rushed to Edwin’s rooms, only to find that he had cornered Gaius and encircled him with fire. Edwin sent an axe flying at her, but Merlin had had enough training with the Catha that she did not even need a spell to send it flying back at him to lodge in his brain. He immediately slumped down dead and the flames disappeared. Gaius and Merlin rushed to the King’s bedside and for once, Gaius encouraged her to use magic.

Merlin put her hands on both of Uther’s ears and murmured the spell Edwin had said to control the beetles, “Bebeode þe arisan ealdu. Áblinnen.” She pulled her hand back, the dead beetle lying in her palm.

“Has anyone ever told you, you’re a genius?” Gaius asked joyously. They both knew that though Uther had not woken that he was now sleeping naturally and was in no danger.

“You certainly haven’t,” Merlin teased.

The next morning, they discovered luck was on their side. Edwin had gloated to Uther, who remembered the gloating, so Gaius was reinstated as Court Physician, given the status of a free man, and no one was too concerned about the fact Edwin was dead in his chambers with an axe in his head. Arthur had looked at Merlin suspiciously when he first saw it, knowing that he had sent Merlin to find Edwin, but he did not say anything. He even ignored it so far as to give her the afternoon off to help Gaius catch up on his rounds after the most unfortunate upset in his routine.


	8. The Sidhe

Everyone settled back into their normal routine for the most part, though there was an amusing conversation between Gaius and the Steward about his salary being raised in light of him being a free man rather than a servant that Merlin missed. She walked in only to see them both making uncomfortable expressions at each other, everything already settled before they shook hands and the Steward left. Arthur, once it had sunk in that Edwin had nearly killed both Morgana and his father, was horrified at his own trusting nature and his good humor quickly devolved into ill temper. Uther suggesting that he go on a hunt at least did put him in a better mood for an hour or two. Hunting was one of Arthur’s favorite activities, but he had only been a few times since Merlin had arrived. As the prince and a knight, he had many responsibilities and also had to have Uther’s permission before he could go rushing off. Merlin had also been in high spirits at the thought of a day off while Arthur was in such a prat mood, but of course her luck was still awful and Arthur insisted that Merlin would go with him so he did not have to take a hunting party. A few of the squires came and thanked her on behalf of their masters for sparing them all Arthur’s temper, as though she had had a choice in the matter. Gaius had laughed for a long time after they had all gone. Merlin had been less amused, since she was planning to wake up very early to get all the hunting gear together.

Morgana came rushing into Arthur’s chambers in her night dress before first light in a complete panic. Merlin only happened to already be in his chambers because Arthur had told her that they were leaving first thing for this hunt he had planned regardless of whether she was ready or not and if she had not prepared everything properly, he would punish her. Obviously, Arthur was in a prat mood still.

“Arthur!” Morgana called out in a panic as Merlin caught her by the arms, stopping her headlong run. “I dreamed… so real… drowned…” Morgana certainly had inherited her mother’s powers. “Arthur!” Even Arthur could not sleep through the racket of Morgana running in screaming his name and Gwen running in after her, calling for her mistress.  
“Morgana, look at me,” Merlin ordered. “Arthur is fine.”

“So real…”

“It hasn’t happened yet,” Merlin whispered urgently. “Morgana, look at me. It hasn’t happened yet.” Morgana finally stopped fighting against her as her words sank in. She gave Merlin a curious look.

“I’m fine, Morgana,” Arthur announced from behind her. “See, healthy as a horse. It was just a bad dream.”

“I’m sorry. It was just so real,” Morgana blushed.

“I won’t let him drown, my lady,” Merlin swore quietly before letting go of her arms and stepping back. Morgana smiled wanly at her, clearly not understanding the words beyond assuming they were to make her feel better. But Merlin was quite serious. The High Priestess Vivienne had been a renowned Seer and if Morgana had had a vision of Arthur drowning, then Merlin would be on edge until she had rescued him from it. He would not die when Morgana had a warning for them. Of course, everyone else in the room, including Morgana, thought it was only a vivid nightmare. Arthur gave Morgana a hug and passed her off to Gwen, who led her out of the room, presumably back to her chambers.

“Poor Morgana,” Arthur murmured. “I thought that Gaius’ sleeping draughts were helping.”

“They only help her fall into a deep sleep,” Merlin told him. “That doesn’t mean that she will always be in a deep enough sleep to avoid dreaming. To have nightmares so often, I cannot imagine the distress she must suffer.”

“Nor I,” Arthur agreed quietly. “What was it you were saying to her when she woke me?”

“I, um, told her that it hadn’t happened. She came in muttering wildly about drowning and so real and she called out for you so I was trying to help her realize that she was awake.”

“That was kind of you,” Arthur told her. “Is Morgana the reason you were matchmaking Gwen?”

“No,” Merlin gave him a look. “I’m going to go get breakfast, since you’re up now.”

“Why were you in my room?”

“I was laying out everything you would need for the hunt today,” Merlin told him. Arthur turned to look at the table and nodded.

“So you were. Go fetch breakfast. Get your own if you haven’t eaten yet.”

“Thank you.” Merlin had not had her own breakfast yet, actually. So she put her porridge on the tray with Arthur’s breakfast and took them both up. The Steward frowned at her, seeing the two breakfasts on one tray, when they passed in the corridor but did not say anything. Merlin just ignored him. Arthur had told her to bring her own breakfast. Unfortunately, Arthur was no longer feeling kind or generous when she arrived and grumbled about her “peasant food” being too close to his food and possibly tainting it. Merlin mostly ignored him, going over the list of hunting gear that Geraint had kindly given her the night before.

“Aren’t you done yet?” Arthur demanded irritably after a few moments. “You’re supposed to entertain me.” Merlin had had little enough sleep that she was in no mood to ignore that ridiculousness.

“No, I’m your manservant, not your fool. I’m supposed to make sure you’re on time in appropriate clothing to your appointments and keep your chambers and laundry clean. Nowhere does it say that I have to amuse you.”

“Merlin…” Arthur growled, glaring at her. Merlin had the vague thought that her life would be so much easier if she could just push Arthur back into bed and kiss him until he let her go back to sleep. Of course, that was not really an option. She muttered an apology and Arthur let it go. Soon enough, they had finished eating. Merlin helped Arthur dress. She put the gear into bags and hefted the bags onto her back. She wished that Arthur had wanted to bring horses. Seeing Faolan would have cheered her up, after all, and then she would not be carrying all the gear on her back.

They set off into the woods. After a bit, Arthur seemed more at ease, less upset. He was still a little huffy, but more inclined to tease than mock. Arthur caught and killed two reasonable size male rabbits. Merlin was beginning to think that maybe hunting was not so bad and the knights were big babies. After all, it was mostly wandering around in the forest without disturbing Arthur’s concentration. He kept himself occupied with his “tracking” and Merlin could just soak in the dappled sunlight. Of course, then he got on the trail of a deer that Merlin could tell was a pregnant female deer. It would be wrong to kill her. So Merlin hung back a little, slowly easing Arthur ahead of her. Then, once he had the deer in his sights, she clattered through the underbrush and “accidentally” tripped into him, ruining his aim. The deer ran.

“What is it?” Merlin asked, feigning innocence.

“You really are a total buffoon, aren’t you?” Arthur demanded irritably.

“I was just asking,” Merlin retorted.

“Who? Me or the deer?” Arthur scoffed. “We’re supposed to be hunting. It requires speed, stealth, and an agile mind.”

“Oh, so you’re able to get by on two out of the three, huh?” Merlin teased. Arthur pointed his finger at her with a warning glare. Then the sound of a woman shouting reached them. “What was that?” Merlin murmured quietly.

“Quiet,” Arthur ordered, listening intently. There was clearly a man and a woman’s voice, both asking for aid. Arthur snatched his sword out of her hand and rushed off in the direction of the scuffle. Merlin groaned and hurried after him. There was a man lying on the ground, a bandit’s sword pointed at his chest, begging for mercy. A pretty young girl was trying to fend off three other bandits, snatching at her skirts and her bag. Arthur shot one of the three bandits attacking the girl. He fell down dead and the other three turned to face Arthur. One of the men grabbed the girl to keep her from running to safety. The bandit with the sword swung at Arthur. While he was busy, the last bandit snuck around to attack him from behind. Merlin was too weighted down to jump into the fray so she looked up and cracked a branch above the man’s head. It was a fair bit larger than anticipated, so rather than giving him a smart rap or even just knocking him out, the branch crushed him to the ground. Arthur took advantage of his opponent’s distraction to run him through. The last bandit intelligently looked at the much changed odds and let go of the girl, running for it. Arthur glanced up at the tree.

“Stroke of luck.”

“And let that be a lesson to you,” Merlin yelled out after the retreating bandit. Arthur gave her a look of complete exasperation, but was distracted from her spell gone a little too well. “What? I was just covering your back.” Arthur just turned his back to her and walked towards the man and girl.

“You alright? They didn’t hurt you?” he asked solicitously. The girl lowered her hood to reveal a beautiful face and oddly Druidic braids. Most of the women in Camelot either wore their hair brushed out like Morgana did, or twisted up out of the way like Gwen did.

“No,” the girl assured him. “Thanks to you. I’m Sophia. This is my father.” She smiled magnanimously at him and Merlin got the strange urge to rip her hair out as Arthur bowed low to her and kissed her hand.

“Arthur Pendragon, at your service,” he murmured. To her great consternation, Arthur immediately insisted that they escort dear Sophia and her father to safety in Camelot. Merlin only vaguely wanted to throttle him. They then claimed to be from some place called Tir Mor, which made Arthur even more solicitous. Merlin was more than a little exasperated by the whole situation. Arthur did not even know this girl and he was already besotted with her.

Of course, they had to be presented to Uther. Merlin barely heard the conversation between Uther and Aulfric, Sophia’s father, her eyes on Arthur, staring dreamily at Sophia while leaning against one of the pillars. But she knew that they had been given permission to stay, because Arthur’s face lit up. Arthur could not tear his eyes away from Sophia as she and her father left the room and Merlin thought it was not her being unfair that Sophia’s gaze seemed less besotted than victorious.

After a bit of a circular conversation, in which Merlin was resolved to give the girl the benefit of the doubt, despite her concerns about the fact that Morgana had clearly had a vision about Arthur drowning just that morning, Sophia and her father were put in rooms on the same hall as Arthur. Of course, then Morgana had to pass by while Merlin was walking out of Sophia’s new room right next to Arthur’s and give her a fright by demanding to know who the girl was.

“She says she’s Sophia of Tir Mor, my lady,” Merlin explained. “We rescued her and her father from some thankfully incompetent bandits on the hunting trip.”

“She cannot stay here,” Morgana murmured wildly.

“You didn’t just see him drown, did you?” Merlin asked quietly. Morgana looked straight at her, finally registering the conversation. “Morgana, trust me. I would not betray your trust. Did you see Sophia drown Arthur?”

“I saw her standing over him as he drowned in full armor, looking quite pleased at the situation,” Morgana answered honestly.

“Then I will make sure that Arthur gets out of the water alive,” Merlin swore. Warnings and prophecies could not always be completely avoided, but the implied fate could often be changed by timely intervention.

“Do not leave him alone with her,” Morgana asked.

“I will do my best.”

“Merlin!” Arthur poked his head out around his door. “Oh, there you are. Leave poor Morgana alone. She’s no desire for your attentions, I assure you.” Merlin stuck her tongue out at Arthur before bowing to Morgana and following Arthur’s unspoken command to attend him.

Arthur was easy going all evening, alternating between quiet daydreaming and murmuring nonsense about how lovely Sophia was. He could not really know if the girl was well-read or intelligent or well-spoken or kind or generous. All he could know was that she was pretty. She had barely opened her mouth since they had rescued her. Merlin was hoping that Arthur would just be a little dazed, love struck for a few days, and hopefully Sophia and her father would leave soon.

Had she mentioned her bad luck in Camelot recently? No? Well, time to remedy that. Arthur, at some point, had told the thrice-damned girl that he would take her on a ride while he was supposed to be on patrol with the guards. Arthur wanted her to lie to his father so he could go for a ride with the girl Morgana had seen drowning him. This was too much.

“No,” Merlin said firmly. She would not.

“Merlin, you have to do this for me,” Arthur begged.

“I do not have to lie to the King because you have no planning skills,” Merlin retorted. “Just knock on the door and apologize, like any other normal person and go do what you’re supposed to be doing. She will be here for a ride this afternoon or tomorrow or next week, even.”

“Merlin,” Arthur was distressed. She had no sympathy.

“You do know that deliberately deceiving the King is treason, right?”

“I wouldn’t let anything happen to you.”

“You would be off in the woods with Sophia. You would not be here while I was doing the lying. Therefore, your father could have my head off before you knew anything was wrong.”

“Don’t be dramatic,” Arthur grumbled.

“I am not lying to your father,” Merlin replied. “And I think it could look dishonorable if you don’t have a chaperone for your outing.” Arthur paused, looking stricken. Oh, that upset him.

“It could,” he agreed. “Damn. I don’t have time to find someone to go with us. You win, Merlin. I’ll go apologize and go on patrol. We’ll have a picnic lunch. Get the lunch and a chaperone ready for when I get back.” Merlin sighed at the extra work, but at least she would not be lying to the King and Arthur would not be alone with Sophia. With Merlin hovering behind Arthur, the apology was quick and painless. Sophia accepted it with grace and happily agreed to the picnic for dinner. Merlin did not mention to Sophia that Arthur had failed to mention the required chaperone, though.

Arthur went off on patrol with the guards and Merlin dropped in the kitchen to tell the cook Arthur wanted a picnic lunch and then she went to the knights’ quarters, looking for Geraint. She found Galahad instead.

“Geraint is… occupied…” he mumbled. Ooh, did Geraint have a sweetheart, then?

“Well, you can probably answer my question. Arthur told me to find a chaperone so he can take Sophia out for a picnic. Who’s the best bet if I want guards to go with them?”

“Not so keen on the mysterious princess?” Galahad chuckled. “I’m not surprised. Ask Cador’s wife, Lady Bertrand. She is not fond of the woods. Thinks there’s always bandits lurking around if she doesn’t have four stone walls around her. But she’s very big on propriety. She’ll insist on going, the King will approve, and you’ll have a nice contingent of guards to keep Arthur from trying anything with the girl.”

“I was more worried about what the girl might do to Arthur,” Merlin admitted. “Thanks, Galahad.” He grinned back affably and Merlin hurried off to find Lady Bertrand.  
Lady Bertrand was exactly as described. She immediately ordered her husband’s squire, who was hanging about like a forlorn page, to go alert the guards that she wanted ten of them to ride out with her. She also went straight to Uther, taking Merlin with her, to inform him of the planned outing and that she would be delighted to chaperone the young prince. Thankfully, Uther seemed as concerned about Arthur’s sudden interest in wooing as Merlin did, making a very strange expression indeed.

Arthur of course was very nearly livid with Merlin when he returned from patrol to find Lady Bertrand, her handmaiden, and ten guards waiting to escort him and Sophia on their picnic and his Father on the steps to see the party off. Sophia looked just as unhappy with the arrangement, making a very dreadful expression and Merlin could have sworn that her eyes turned red. Surely that could not be a trick of the light. There was definitely something not quite right about Sophia, even if Merlin was being unfair and Morgana had only had a normal nightmare and not a vision.

The picnic went well enough by Merlin’s standards. Lady Bertrand and the guards were shocked by how rudely Sophia refused to answer innocent small talk about her home and her childhood and what fate had befallen them. Arthur was in an absentminded daze and the guards, who Merlin noticed were actually mostly the knight’s squires, all looked shocked at his behavior. However, Merlin got to eat what was on Arthur’s plate, since he was too busy staring dreamily into Sophia’s eyes, and Sophia had no chance to cause any harm to Arthur.

Merlin grinned at Morgana, who was looking out her window when they rode back into the courtyard. She ducked back inside but Merlin thought that Morgana would be pleased that she had been so proactive in keeping Arthur safe. 

Of course, she had to talk him out of doing the exact same thing the next morning. His father was bestowing a knighthood. Arthur wanted to run off with Sophia. Merlin somehow managed to avert disaster again. Sophia and her father both looked livid when Arthur apologized, but Arthur did not seem to notice. Merlin was less surprised than maybe she should have been when she arrived in Arthur’s chambers with his dinner to find both father and daughter cornering Arthur and Arthur looking even more dazed than before.  
“Arthur didn’t tell me you were joining him for dinner,” Merlin interrupted. She feared it was not soon enough, as Sophia was smiling smugly at her.

“Oh, we weren’t. I just wanted to have a moment alone with Arthur. Well, more alone than that picnic,” Sophia giggled. Arthur stared dazedly after her as she left. Merlin had to hand-feed him to get him to eat. As it was, half the plate was untouched when Merlin had to drag him off to training. He got knocked on his ass three times before Merlin interceded, running into the middle of the field with a water skin. One of the older knights took her cue.

“I believe that’s enough training for one day,” he announced. All the rest of the knights fell in line, even the new one who looked very confused by the proceedings. Merlin got Arthur slung half over her shoulder and dragged him off the field. He was not being cooperative.

“Why is that servant allowed on the field?” the new knight asked.

Sir Leon answered him, “That is Arthur’s personal manservant. I trust you heard the story about Arthur getting thrown in the dungeon for defying his father and going to get some herb or other to make an antidote after his servant drank poison for him?”

“Yeah,” the confused knight agreed. “Is that the servant?”

“That’s the servant. His name is Merlin.”

“He doesn’t look like much.”  
“He has a big heart.” That was Galahad.

“He’s really brave, too.” That was Geraint. Then Merlin was out of hearing range. It was unfortunate. She had been having a rough week, fortnight, first with Edwin, then Arthur’s prat mood, and now Sophia. Hearing people compliment her would be nice.

Merlin managed to get Arthur back to his chambers on her own and then locked the doors and used her magic to help get him out of his armor. Arthur was in far too much of a daze to notice anything. She put him in bed and went down to fetch him supper. The cook told her that Arthur was supposed to eat with his father. Thankfully, Gwen was getting Morgana some biscuits to tide her over and when Merlin explained about the training and Arthur being in a daze, Gwen agreed to ask Morgana to smooth it over with Uther. There could be no question of him going in this state. Once the cook had thrown a meal together, Merlin took it back up and hand-fed Arthur like an invalid. He did not even seem to notice. Merlin was very concerned. She stayed late into the night and prayed over him before she left.

As she was going down the corridor, she saw Sophia’s father sneaking out of the castle. Merlin followed him. With Morgana’s vision and her own suspicions, she had to know whether this suspicious behavior was innocent or not. She was hoping for the latter, unfortunately, because she did not like the idea of being the kind of idiot servant who fell in love with a prince and then jealously attributed suspicious behavior to each noblewoman who caught his eye. Luckily for her sanity, unluckily for Arthur, she trailed the man to a lake and he called upon the Sidhe elders. Merlin was gawking most unbecomingly at the fact she had somehow stumbled upon the lake of Avalon without even trying when he continued on about killing Arthur to earn his daughter back her place amongst the Sidhe. Well, Morgana was looking more and more like a Seer every day. Merlin snuck off back to the castle and got what little sleep she could before she had to get up and fetch Arthur’s breakfast.

The next morning, Arthur was alert and not at all in a daze. He woke quickly, ate his breakfast, dressed himself, and said nothing about trying to run off with Sophia. Merlin was tentatively hopefully that her prayer had fixed whatever Sophia had done. It had worked for the plague, after all. Of course, then she lost track of Arthur right before council because Gaius had wanted something and he came walking in, hand in hand, with Sophia. Morgana went pale as a sheet. Gwen’s eyes widened. Merlin swallowed down a rush of panic. Arthur asked his father for permission to marry Sophia. Uther laughed. No one else did. This was madness. Then Uther realized Arthur was serious. He made a show of power, reminding Arthur who was in charge. He had the guards grab Sophia and her father, threatening to have them thrown in the dungeon or worse. Arthur begged for mercy, lied that he would put the idea from his mind. Uther waved his hand and the guards released them. Merlin wished he had not. They were mortal now and if Uther killed them, then Arthur would be safe. Oh god, Merlin made a face as she watched Arthur stalk out of the room, she was in love with the prat prince. How had this happened? She did not deserve this amount of bad luck.

Morgana rushed out of the council chambers once everyone was dismissed. Unlike Merlin, she did not know how to find someone without having to go and look for them, so she did not know that he was just in his chambers, sulking. Merlin went down to the kitchens to get Arthur’s dinner first. At least she could come bearing food and hopefully Arthur would not take his ill temper out on her. He probably would anyway but it was better than showing up empty-handed. Of course, when Merlin arrived with food, it was not to Morgana trying to yell sense into Arthur’s head. Her luck was not that good. It was to Sophia and her father convincing Arthur to elope with Sophia. He seemed fairly convinced, as he was now wearing his chainmail and packing a bag.

“Arthur!” Merlin exclaimed, interrupting the conversation as she set the tray on the table. “What are you doing?”

“I’m leaving,” Arthur replied. He looked dazed again.

“Why?”

“Because Sophia and I are in love. We must not be parted.”

“She’s enchanted you, Arthur. Please, listen to me. You don’t know what you’re doing.”

“Who are you to speak to me in such a manner?” Arthur demanded angrily. Merlin glared back at him.

“I’m your friend!”

“You’re my servant.”

“Come, Arthur, we must away,” Sophia insisted. Arthur nodded absently, reaching out to her and smiling blankly.

“Arthur, she’s controlling you. Please, I’m begging you. Listen to me.”

“You love me,” Sophia crooned.

“She’s going to kill you,” Merlin told him. Arthur paused, finally looking back over at her. “They’re Sidhe and she’s going to kill you. Arthur, please!”

“Do you allow servants to speak of your guests in such a manner?” Sophia’s father asked.

“Only when it is true,” Arthur answered. He looked lost and confused. “Merlin, why are you saying this?”

“I followed Aulfric out of the castle last night. He called upon the Sidhe elders to start a ritual that sacrifices a prince. You will be the sacrifice. If you go with her, you’ll die.”

“But that doesn’t make sense,” Arthur mumbled. “We’re in love.”

“I’m sorry, Arthur, but you’re in love,” Merlin corrected. “Sophia is not.”

“Arthur, you must not believe these lies,” Sophia insisted. Merlin noticed that she had avoided all use of the word love.

“Oh, if they’re lies, then tell him you love him,” she challenged. The Sidhe could not love, after all. Sophia stiffened.

“I do not have to grace your ridiculous accusations with a response,” Sophia grumbled. Arthur looked at her with confusion. Merlin’s challenge shouldn’t have caused that response, if Sophia loved him. Of course, she did not. Merlin could see that Arthur was truly starting to believe her that Sophia did not have his best interests at heart.

“Merlin?” he murmured quietly. Merlin reached out to touch him, hoping to anchor him to reality. Unfortunately, Sophia and her father noticed that Arthur was seeing the truth as well. Sophia spoke some spell that Merlin did not even recognize the language and Arthur’s eyes turned red. He took Sophia’s hand and strode out the door with her. Merlin tried to go after him and Aulfric took advantage of her inattention to cast a spell of his own. Merlin went flying through the air, in the opposite direction she wanted to go, until she hit the stone wall with a crack, her head flung back with a second sound and then everything went black.

“Merlin!” Morgana cried. The world was shaking. No, Morgana was shaking her awake.

“I’m up,” Merlin slurred, forcing her eyes open. Morgana was kneeling by her side and Gwen was staring down at her. The angle of the sun had changed enough that Arthur and Sophia clearly had a head start. Damn.

“Are you alright?” Gwen asked hesitantly.

“Did you stop Arthur?” Merlin asked. First things first, after all.

“No,” Morgana admitted. “What happened to you?”

“Sophia took Arthur and her father threw me into a wall.”

“Sophia did enchant Arthur?” Gwen gasped. Merlin and Morgana both gave her a look of scorn. Obviously the girl had enchanted Arthur.

“But how will we find them?” Morgana asked despairingly.

“I followed Aulfric to a lake last night. He started a ritual there to sacrifice a prince. Given that you foresaw Sophia drowning him, I think it’s a safe bet.” Morgana shivered, looking worried. “Don’t fret, my lady. I would never betray you.”

“But how can we stop them? You’re in no state to travel.”

“I will manage.” Merlin forced her stiff body to her feet. She had to blink back spots in front of her eyes, but she was steady. Gwen was horrified at the idea but Morgana nodded approvingly.

“I’ll get you a horse then,” she replied. “Gwen, help him down to the courtyard. We must not lose any more time.”

“Milady, surely?” Gwen implored. Morgana shook her head.

“Someone must go,” she insisted, whirling about and hurrying out of the room. She still looked like she was gliding across the floor, completely unfair.

“And Uther will notice if both Arthur and Morgana are gone,” Merlin finished the thought. “That could be dangerous.” Gwen reluctantly agreed and they started towards the courtyard. Merlin could walk unaided well enough, but Gwen hovered close, in case she lost her balance. They made it down to the courtyard soon enough, where Morgana had the horse waiting. Merlin managed to recognize that it was one of Arthur’s horses, the dark brown one called Duane. Merlin managed to climb into the saddle without falling over and urged the horse forwards. Gwen waved her off and Morgana watched as well, pretending to be indulging her handmaiden. Merlin headed for the lake, remembering the direction well enough from the night before.

Thankfully, Sophia and Arthur had not had horses, so despite their head start, Merlin caught up to them as Sophia led Arthur into the water. Aulfric was watching his daughter closely, not paying attention to the world around him. Sophia had left her magical staff lying on the ground. That would be useful. Merlin snuck forward and grabbed it. She had it aimed and sent her magic through it before Aulfric could react. With a bolt of red magic, he exploded. She turned and did the same thing in Sophia’s direction, seeing her gaping in horror at her before she too exploded. Of course, Morgana had seen Arthur underwater, so Merlin had not been quick enough that Sophia had not already pushed him under. Merlin leapt out into the water where Sophia and Arthur had been standing, took a deep breath and dove under. She had to find him. Her magic stretched out in all directions and she felt a bright pulse as her fingers brushed something slick. Merlin grabbed hold of it. It was Arthur’s hand, the leather glove slick and hard to hold. With her other hand, she grabbed his chainmail and hauled him to the surface. Merlin took in a great gulp of air, but Arthur did not. She felt her heart seize with terror but she forced herself not to panic as she dragged him to shore. He could not have been under very long at all. Her magic pulled the water from his lungs and Arthur rolled to cough it up, hacking and breathing in. Thank the Goddess. Merlin felt tears of joy stream down her face. Arthur would live.

Despite the fact she knew that Morgana was worried and scared back in Camelot, Merlin took her time getting Arthur on the horse. She walked it back to the castle, hoping it would help keep her body from freezing up. She felt like absolute death. There was definitely a giant scrape on her back, she wasn’t sure if the spot had skin or not. There was a trickle of blood coming down the back of her neck, so she had definitely busted her head. Her left shoulder was stiff and felt awkward. Her vision was spinning and she realized she had not eaten since breakfast and the sun was already setting.

Morgana and Gwen were waiting in the courtyard with Geraint and Galahad and Sir Leon and Sir Ewan and some other knight, one of the young ones when Merlin plodded slowly in.

“How is he?” Morgana asked. “He’s soaked!”

“And cold,” Geraint added, having reached up to pull Arthur off the horse.

“He’s fine, just sleeping,” Merlin told them. Sir Leon swung her up into his arms and Merlin whimpered at the pressure on her back where the skin most definitely was not. Galahad and Geraint and Sir Ewan and the other knight, Owen mayhap, lifted Arthur up and carried him inside. Sir Leon led the way to Arthur’s chambers with Merlin in his arms. Morgana and Gwen fetched out clean dry clothes for both of them and helped the knights change them, as though they were babes. Merlin did not even think to blush. She was too tired.  
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Leon murmured, seeing the wound on her back. Morgana went to fetch Gaius, while Gwen helped Merlin settle down on her stomach. Arthur stirred as they put him in clean clothes but did not wake.

“What happened?” Geraint asked her, once it was clear Merlin would not offer up an explanation on her own.

“Aulfric and Sophia had magic,” she mumbled. “Aulfric threw me into a wall. Sophia had enchanted Arthur. Had to get him out of the lake. Mustn’t tell Uther.”

“Sophia and Aulfric?” Leon asked. “Are they alive?”

“No. Magic stick work for anyone.” Merlin was too tired to be answering questions, especially with the truth not being something she should tell anyone. Thankfully Gaius came in just then. He was livid about having to come up with some explanation on the spot about what Merlin must have meant and trust that the knights and squires would not tell Uther anyway. But the wound on her back made him a little more sympathetic. After Gaius had tended to her and given Arthur an examination to ascertain that he truly was fine, just exhausted from his ordeal, Merlin was left in Arthur’s bed and Gaius shooed everyone out to let them get some rest.

The next morning, Arthur rolled over and his arm landed on her wound and Merlin cried out in pain, waking them both up.

“Why are you in my bed?” Arthur demanded. Merlin was still whimpering, unable to answer. “Oh my god, Merlin, what happened to you?”

“Um, long story,” she managed to grit out. Arthur traced gently around the edge of the wound.

“Poor thing,” he murmured. The bolt of pain finally lessened, her attention instead focused on the light touch that did not hurt at all.

“Sophia enchanted you. How much do you remember?”

“I… um…” Arthur clearly had to think about it. “We rescued her and her father from bandits. We brought them here. You made sure there were guards when I took her on a picnic. Did you know then?”

“I was suspicious,” Merlin admitted. “Do you remember trying to get me to lie for you so you didn’t have to go on patrol?”

“Not well,” Arthur grumbled.

“That’s fairly normal,” she assured him. “Don’t fret.”

“You didn’t let me go out with her the next morning either. I got humiliated in training. Oh my god, did I really make a spectacle asking Father for permission to marry her?”

“You really did.”

“Then, then, I was packing. I was going to run off with her, elope. You came in, tried to say something to me. I don’t remember anything after that.”

“I had almost convinced you not to go with her when Sophia put some other spell on you. Your eyes turned red. You ran off with her and Aulfric threw me into the wall. I’m pretty sure he used magic. The giant scrape is from that. Morgana woke me up, she’d been looking for you and found me instead, and she sent me to go fetch you back.”

“How did you get me away from Sophia and Aulfric?”

“I killed them.”

“How?” Arthur carefully rolled her over into his arms so they were facing one another.

“The staffs they used had magic in them. Sophia had put hers down, so I picked it up.”

“Does anyone else know about this?”

“Morgana, Gwen, Gaius, Leon, Ewan, Owen, Geraint and Galahad,” Merlin told him with a wince. “I’ve no idea what Gaius told everyone to satisfy their curiosity about how I saved you, though.”

“Have you eaten?” Arthur suddenly demanded. Merlin shook her head. “I’m starving. Let me go send for food.” He carefully eased his arm out from under her, easily stood, walked over to the door and waved down a passing servant. She was only too eager to fetch the prince’s breakfast. Arthur made his way back to the bed, clearly feeling perfectly fine. “Alright, how did we end up with knights knowing? Gwen knows whatever Morgana knows, I am aware of that, and Morgana woke you. She was suspicious of Sophia too. Rightfully so. I suspect I owe her an apology. And Gaius had to treat you, and probably look me over. But the knights?”

“I’m not sure. I was a little out of it when I got back,” Merlin admitted. “All I know is they were waiting with Morgana and Gwen. Leon carried me and the rest carried you. They put us both in your bed, got us in dry clothes. Oh, goddess, Morgana and Gwen helped with that.”

“Oh my god,” Arthur muttered. “Of course they did. At least I was unconscious.”

“I was as good as,” Merlin told him. “Couldn’t even summon a blush.”

“You flush easily,” Arthur agreed affably. “I suppose I ought to thank you for coming after me. It was brave.”

“I think it was just because I’d hit my head,” Merlin teased him. Arthur laughed. There was a knock on the door and they both froze.

“Breakfast?” a timid serving girl called as she creaked the door open.

“Come in,” Arthur told her. She looked a little surprised to see Merlin in bed with Arthur but held her tongue and handed the breakfast tray over. She curtsied and quickly left. “See, Merlin? That’s how a proper servant behaves. She kept her thoughts to herself, showed proper respect…”

“If you had a proper servant, you’d be floating face down in a lake, Arthur,” Merlin reminded him. Arthur winced.

“Help yourself,” he waved at the tray as he started eating. Merlin took the piece of bacon he was reaching for. Arthur gave her a grumpy look but didn’t fuss at her. Between them, there was not a single thing left on the tray. Arthur set it on the ground and they ended up falling back asleep.

When Uther came in to see where Arthur was, why he wasn’t on patrol, like he was supposed to be, they were both asleep, Merlin on her stomach, sprawled over Arthur’s chest. Merlin roused a little and blinked sleepily at him but Uther just waved dismissively and she slumped back down. Arthur woke a second later, and Merlin felt him tense up.

“Oh god, I’m supposed to be on patrol!”

“Yes, you are,” Uther agreed calmly. He didn’t sound angry. “I see Sophia and her father left. How far did you go before your servant brought you back?”

“A couple hours’ walk,” Arthur replied awkwardly. “Merlin thinks she enchanted me.”

“That would explain your behavior.” Uther seemed quite calm. “Gaius told me what happened. I ran into him on my way here. He thinks you were enchanted as well. It explains why Morgana was so concerned about you.”

“Yes,” Arthur mumbled awkwardly.

“Well, I can see you’ve already made up with your body servant. Morgana shouldn’t be too much more difficult.”

“Father!” Arthur protested. Merlin smiled drowsily.

“Do you have an alternative explanation for your behavior with Merlin?” Arthur froze. He must have made some gesture because he said nothing. “Exactly as I thought. At least you don’t have to worry about bastards.” Merlin heard Uther’s boots click on the stones as he left. The door shut quietly behind him.

“Are you awake?” Arthur whispered. Merlin shook her head. “Idiot,” he mumbled fondly and ruffled her hair. “We should get up soon.”

“Don’ wanna,” Merlin grumbled.

“I have to apologize to Morgana for mocking her and Gaius will want to look at your back,” Arthur reminded her. “Besides, it’s nearly midmorning.”

“You can tell you got the better end of the deal,” Merlin grumbled. “Enchantment doesn’t leave physical bruises.”

“And we have to find out what Gaius told everyone.” Merlin made a strange involuntary noise. Arthur laughed at her, but he helped her up and into a shirt. He even managed to dress himself without help. Then they both went to Gaius’ chambers. Apparently, he had told everyone that Merlin had used Sophia’s staff to knock Aulfric and Sophia in the head to keep them from interfering as she brought Arthur back to Camelot. The knights knew about the lake; Uther did not.

The conversation with Morgana went better than Arthur had anticipated. Morgana nearly wept to see him clearly perfectly fine. Gwen was fussing over Merlin, who was moving gingerly. Neither of them was concerned about how apparently Morgana had gone to speak to Arthur at some point, Merlin had missed this entirely, and when she warned him about Sophia, he cruelly mocked her, saying she was in love with him. Everyone in the room knew it was not true. Morgana and Arthur cared for one another, but neither was in love with the other. And Arthur had been enchanted, after all.

The next week was quiet. The gossip about Sophia and Arthur, both truth and slander, may have been a favorite topic, but there was no new excitement. Perhaps it was that rain was a good sign in Camelot, since it did rain for three days straight. Merlin and Arthur just went about their usual routine and did not bring up that morning that they had eaten breakfast in bed together and gone back to sleep. Somehow, a knight or squire was always nearby when Arthur wanted a bath, so Merlin did not have to haul the water. But other than that, everything was normal.


	9. Enter Mordred

Merlin had almost begun to get used to the idea of normal, when one morning she nearly fell over, hearing a loud cry for help in her mind. She knew it was not something she heard aloud, but through her magic. A child, a boy, crying for help. Merlin followed the thread of magic down to the main courtyard. There was a boy in a green Druid’s cloak, hiding behind a wagon while the guards searched. It had been a while since Merlin had been taught to use her magic to speak and she had never had to use it with any frequency, but it came back easily enough. She beckoned the boy over. He sprinted across the courtyard to her as Merlin made a small ruckus with some stacked barrels of mead on the other end. The boy reached her and she rushed him in the side door, spiriting him up the back stair. Unfortunately, Merlin heard the guards behind them. They were right next to Morgana’s chambers. She pulled the boy along as she ran up the stairs and burst into the room, shutting the door behind her.

“Merlin, have you forgotten…?” Morgana trailed off. “What’s this?”

“They’re after him, he’s only a boy.” Merlin fervently hoped that Morgana would not betray them.

“Behind the screen,” Morgana agreed immediately. “Keep quiet.”

“My lady?” a guard pounded on the door, even as they darted behind the screen in the corner.

“Honestly,” Morgana said irritably. Merlin heard the door open.

“My lady, we are so sorry to disturb you…” Merlin heard no more of the conversation as the Druid boy fainted away in her arms. Merlin caught him and stifled a grunt of exertion and surprise. Thankfully, the door closed. The guards left. Merlin heaved a great sigh of relief. Morgana and Gwen both bustled over.

“I think he’s hurt,” Merlin admitted. Morgana took the boy while Gwen and Merlin hurriedly made a small pallet for him, taking a few of Morgana’s pillows and spare blankets. Morgana lowered him to the make-shift bed and Merlin stripped his cloak and shirt off. Unsurprisingly, he had a triskelion tattoo on his chest. He was certainly one of the children given to the Druids for their own protection. Merlin’s mother had been too selfish to send Merlin away, but it was certainly common enough. A child born to a family without magic could easily hurt themselves by accident, trying to do something helpful or amusing and causing something dreadful instead because they had no concept of enough. The boy had a cut on his upper arm, a red nasty thing that was still bleeding.

“We can’t leave that,” Gwen murmured.

“No, but I know how to treat a simple cut,” Merlin assured her. “I’ll go borrow some supplies from Gaius, he should be out in the town right now, and I’ll be right back.” Morgana gave him a tight smile and Gwen nodded. Merlin stood and crossed the room, leaving.

As she left, she heard Morgana say, “No child deserves this.”

“Of course not,” Gwen agreed. Merlin hurried as quickly as possible without arousing suspicion to Gaius’ chambers, fetched bandages and a few herbs to fight off infection, secreted them under her tunic and rushed back to Morgana’s chambers. Arthur was in council with the King, which Merlin was not attending now that Arthur was perfectly comfortable letting her out of his sight, and would not miss her too quickly. Thankfully, no one noticed her on either journey and she was soon safely back in Morgana’s chambers. The boy was awake again.

“Hello,” Merlin greeted him, taking the bandages and herbs out from under her tunic. He looked up, but replied with his magic. She frowned in confusion. “I’m going to bandage that cut on your arm, alright?” The boy nodded.

“He hasn’t spoken,” Morgana whispered.

OH! “Are you doing your vow of silence this year?” she asked. The boy nodded again. “It’s a Druid ritual,” Merlin explained to Morgana and Gwen as she knelt beside the boy and started tending to him. “It’s to teach self-restraint, I think. They spend most of a year under a vow of silence. They cannot speak to anyone. But Druids also have very strict rules about harm that they must follow as adults, so they learn as children never to act solely on instinct.”

“The Druids are a peaceful people,” Gwen murmured. Merlin nodded absently.

“They none of them can cause harm to another, right?” Morgana asked. Both Merlin and the boy nodded. She tied off the bandage.

“Is that too tight?” she asked. He shook his head. “I’m Merlin.” He smiled at her. “That’s Morgana.” Morgana beamed at him. “That’s Gwen.” Gwen waved shyly. The boy waved back. Gwen blushed. Honestly. Morgana gave her a look like the same thought had crossed her mind.

“Will Arthur be out of council yet?” Gwen asked. “We don’t want him to come here looking for you.”

“No, Arthur might feel guilty,” Morgana agreed.

“I’ll go see what he’s doing,” Merlin agreed. “I’ll come back when I can.” She left again, trusting Morgana and Gwen would keep the boy safe.

Arthur had just gotten back to his chambers when she arrived.

“Where were you?” he asked, sounding a little grumpy.

“I went to check on Gwen and Morgana,” she told him. “With the Druids…”

“The Druids are a peaceful people,” Arthur growled. “I don’t see why Father insists on executing the man. And the boy is only a child.”

“Your father does what he thinks is best for the good of the kingdom,” Merlin replied quietly.

“Do you agree with him?” Arthur asked. His expression was open and his tone was curious. It wasn’t a trap.

Merlin made certain to keep her voice even anyway. “No. The Druids have made oaths to never cause harm to another, no matter the circumstances. What crime have they committed to warrant execution? Most of them don’t even have magic now, after the purge.”

“I wish my father could see that,” Arthur sighed. “I just hope we don’t catch that boy. No child deserves to be beheaded.”

“No,” Merlin agreed. For some reason or another, she did not tell Arthur that she was the one who had helped the boy hide. She did not think he would ever turn her over to Uther for something like this, something minor that he even agreed with, at least in sentiment, but she just did not tell him. Unfortunately, there was no way to get the older Druid out of the cells without a blatant use of magic that would only enrage Uther. Merlin felt terrible about it, but nothing could be done without making the situation worse.

She felt worse the next morning, as the man, Cerdan, Mordred told her silently, was executed. Arthur was out on the balcony with Uther and had sent her to comfort Morgana and Gwen. She would have gone anyway, of course. Mordred looked horribly stricken. Though Mordred’s parents were nice peasant people who had raised him until he blighted the cabbage he didn’t like to eat at age 6 and nothing could be done to fix it, even as it spread to all their crops, Cerdan had taken care of him for the last four years and Mordred loved him dearly. Morgana could not even watch the execution from the window, turning her head at the last second. Merlin watched, gave the man that honor, even as she felt like heaving her breakfast back up. The ax fell and the mirror shattered, a scream of Mordred’s pain. Merlin felt a sympathetic pang. Would that she could have done something.

“My condolences, lytling,” Merlin murmured. Mordred said nothing, aloud or with his magic.

“What does that word mean?” Gwen asked.

“Little one, child,” Merlin told her, walking away from the window.

“You know the language of the Druids?” Morgana asked.

“I was raised in Essetir. It’s not uncommon in other kingdoms for people to know a few words. Plus, the Druids travel on the same paths for the most part and my village was on one of those paths. Sometimes they would stay for the winter. It’s how I learned to read and write, actually. One of those winters, a few of the Druids gathered up all the children in the village and taught us.”

“I didn’t know that,” Morgana said quietly.

“Well, I don’t bring it up here. Having anything to do with anything possibly related to magic can be a crime.”

“That’s true,” Gwen agreed with a sigh. “Not to be insensitive, but we can’t keep the boy here indefinitely. We have to find some way to get him back to his people.”

“They won’t have been on their own,” Merlin said. “Not in Camelot. His band can’t be too far.” Mordred shook his head, silently clarifying that they had not been an hour’s walk two days ago.

“Well, we can’t do anything yet. He must be fit to travel and we’ll have to leave at night.” Morgana was practical. “Oh, I forgot I have to dine with Uther tonight. I don’t want to go, but he might be suspicious if I don’t. I’ve barely left my chambers and someone’s bound to have noticed.”

“Unfortunately, I better get back to Arthur. He was firmly opposed to executing the man, so he’s bound to be in a prat mood all day.”

“Sorry,” Gwen winced sympathetically.

“Thanks.” Merlin gently squeezed Mordred’s shoulder before she turned and left. Morgana patted her absently on the arm as she passed. She closed the door behind her, only to find Arthur already in the hall. She hurried down the stairs to meet him.

“How are they?” he asked quietly.

“Neither one of them could watch, but they’ll be fine,” she assured him.

“Good.” Arthur nodded. “Come on, now. I want a bath before I have to go out looking for the boy again.” Merlin nodded agreeably and hurried off to the kitchens to get the water. Arthur had his bath while Merlin tidied up and then went off to go searching for the Druid boy some more. Merlin, rather than go back to Morgana’s chambers, went around doing her usual chores. After all, Mordred was safe and sound and this way no one would notice her behaving unusually.

Arthur came storming in while Morgana was eating with Uther, grumbling about how he had been looking all damn day and he was tired and Uther was paranoid and what in the world had gotten into Morgana?

“Well, you said that Uther decided someone was hiding the boy, right? Maybe Morgana was trying to make sure she didn’t get accused. She hasn’t slept well, so she’s been keeping to her room the past couple days.”

“Oh, yes,” Arthur nodded. “Morgana’s good at that sort of thing. I have a headache.”

“A headache remedy from Gaius headache or a pitcher of mead from the kitchen headache?” Merlin asked. Arthur smiled fondly at her.

“Get me some mead, would you?”

“Of course.” Merlin ran down to the kitchens and was soon back, handing him the drink. Arthur dismissed her. Merlin went to check on Morgana and Mordred before she went to bed. Mordred was healing well, but Morgana was not yet ready to let him travel.

Merlin was back in Morgana’s chambers the next morning when Arthur came knocking, having been ordered to search everyone’s chambers. Merlin was silently talking at Mordred, having started with expressions of sympathy and in the middle of a story she knew from the Druids when Arthur knocked. Morgana closed the curtain that hung behind the screen, hiding both of them.

“Arthur! To what do I owe this pleasure?” Merlin could hear the tension in Morgana’s voice.

“Don't get all excited,” Arthur replied. “It's not a social call. I'm looking for the Druid boy. I'm afraid I'm going to have to search your chambers.”

“You're not searching my chambers,” Morgana retorted.

“Don't take it personally. I have to search the entire castle. Only take a few minutes,” Arthur cajoled.

“I'm not having you mess up my things,” Morgana insisted.

“I'm not interested in your things, I'm just looking for any evidence that the Druid boy's in the castle. Father insisted.”

“Perhaps the Druid boy's hiding in your chambers,” Morgana teased. “They're usually such a mess, you'd never know.”

“It's hardly my fault I have such a lazy idiot for a servant,” Arthur grumbled. Merlin made a face. It was not her fault that Arthur got prat moods and would literally throw things across the room at her whenever she showed her face and then she had to avoid him as much as possible to avoid injury.

“If you can't even find your own servant, what hope do you have of finding the boy?”

“Really, I'm touched by the confidence you have in my abilities. And, as much as I'd love to stay and talk, the sooner we get started, the sooner we'll be finished,” Arthur told her.

“Well, I'll save you the trouble,” Morgana sneered.

“Trust me, if I could find him, I would.”

“No, The Druid boy's hiding behind the screen. I'm sure your father would love to know how you wasted your time by rifling through my things. Go on.” Oh, Morgana, let that work. Let him leave. Mordred had seized up with fear. Merlin silently assured him that she was not really turning him over and Arthur would not come look.

“So you can have the satisfaction of making me look a fool?” Arthur demanded irritably. Merlin and Mordred both slumped with relief.

“In my experience, you don't need any help looking like a fool. What are you waiting for? Take a look.”

“Why don't you go back to brushing your hair, or whatever it is that you do all day?” Arthur grumbled, stomping over to the door.

“Bye, Arthur. Good luck with the search!” Morgana called out cheerfully. The door closed and Merlin snapped the curtain open.

“Was the sole purpose of that to give both of us a horrid fright?” she demanded. Morgana smiled at her.

“I knew Arthur would assume I was just stringing him along.” Merlin was not nearly as amused. She sent a silent apology to Mordred as she stalked out of Morgana’s chambers into the servant’s hallway. Unsurprisingly, it was empty. Morgana was the only person with chambers in the immediate vicinity, so the only person who used the hallway with any regularity was Gwen, who was currently off doing Morgana’s laundry.

Merlin went into Arthur’s chambers only to find he had made a complete mess of them. They looked almost as bad as they had when she had first been appointed his manservant and he had been hoping to antagonize her into quitting. Of course, Merlin had taken it as a challenge instead. She decided to take this mess the same way, even though she knew it was more indicative of Arthur’s anger with his Father about the Druids. She cleaned up the spilled mead, changed the rushes, cleaned all the clothes he had scattered across the floor, took the soiled sheets and cleaned them as well, straightened up all the things he had thrown across the room, and then fetched his supper and a bath. Arthur plodded grumpily into his room.

“Should I take it you found the boy and feel horrible or your Father’s angry because you haven’t?”

“Father’s angry,” Arthur grumbled.

“I got you a bath,” she told him brightly. Arthur’s face twitched into a pleased expression for a moment before fading back into moroseness. But he gratefully stripped out of his clothes and sank into the bath. Merlin washed his hair for him and Arthur was in a better mood as he sat down to his supper.

“Have you eaten?” he asked.

“Yes,” Merlin answered. She had eaten when she fetched his supper, as she usually did. Unless Arthur demanded his meal immediately, she usually had time to wander down to the kitchens and eat before she had to take his tray back up. After all, Arthur really didn’t care what order she did her chores in unless he needed something specific. After Arthur dismissed her that evening, having to go back out to search for the boy, Merlin went to Morgana’s chambers to find Morgana had decided that they were going to sneak Mordred out. Merlin tried to get Morgana to let her do it, at least she was aware of her powers. She could distract the guards, silence her footsteps, be proactive about not getting caught. But Morgana was insistent that she would do it and Mordred had no arguments. Morgana wrapped her bright red cloak around her and she and Mordred hurried out into the night. Merlin could not watch. She went down to the dragon.

“Are you here about the Druid boy?” the dragon asked.

“Sort of. Morgana’s insisted that she will sneak him out of the castle. I could not bear to watch her fail. With no knowledge of her own abilities, she’ll never get out. Arthur himself is searching tonight.”

“Well, that will be for the best,” the dragon told her. Merlin wrinkled her brow in confusion.

“What do you mean? He is just a child.”

“The name, Mordred, is it unfamiliar to you?”

“I’ve heard it before but I couldn’t place it. Is it from a prophecy?”

“The prophecy of the Once and Future King.”

“The one that everyone thought Uther would fulfill? You know, before he started the purge and slayed the dragons?”

“Yes, that one,” the dragon agreed. “I believe it is his son’s destiny to fulfill that prophecy. And the one to slay that King is a boy raised by the Druids, named Mordred.”

“It could be a different child. Most of the witches and warlocks are raised by the Druids now, because of the purge. The name may be uncommon, but surely there is more than one person to bear the name.”

“It is not a different child.”

“But he is so young. He is only ten years old. How can you know he will murder someone as an adult?”

“The prophecies do not lie.”

“Neither are they clear,” Merlin argued. “Perhaps you are wrong.”

“I am not wrong, young warlock. Heed my words. Let the boy die now, keep your prince safe.”

“If the boy is foretold to make an attempt on Arthur’s life, I could not kill him myself before he has done it,” Merlin snapped. “It would not work. Prophecies cannot be that much averted, not like that.”

“You can let him die,” the dragon growled.

“I’m not arguing about this,” Merlin grumbled. There was a long moment of silence. The dragon was glaring at her, smoke blowing out of his nostrils. Merlin just wanted to lay down and cry or scream or something. Morgana was not going to get Mordred out. Arthur would catch her. If they had to watch a boy be executed, Arthur would be in an absolutely insufferable mood for who only knew how long.

“You must be wary of the boy,” the dragon insisted.

“Fine. I will keep your theory that the boy will try to kill Arthur at some point in mind,” she sighed. “Is that where your ‘two sides of the same coin’ came from?” The dragon agreed. After a little bit longer, Merlin went back up to her room in Gaius’ chambers. There had been no comfort to be found with the dragon.

In the morning, she went to Morgana’s chambers and Gwen stopped her outside them. She was clearly upset and Merlin knew she had not been wrong.

“Arthur found them?” she asked quietly. Gwen nodded. “Give Morgana my condolences, then. She was very fond of the boy.”

“Of course,” Gwen agreed. There was nothing more to say so Merlin squeezed her hand and went off to Arthur. As she had expected, even the breakfast tray in her hands did not keep him from throwing a goblet at her. It had been on his bedside table. The rest of the room looked equally horrible.

“I heard you caught the boy,” Merlin murmured.

“The boy was behind the screen when she told me,” Arthur snarled. “I feel like a fool. But no child deserves this fate.”

“He’s caught now, though,” Merlin replied quietly. “He’s in the dungeons. There’s nothing left to be done.”

“Exactly,” Arthur agreed too quickly. “Nothing left to be done, Merlin. Now clean up my chambers. I don’t understand how you let them get to such a state.”

“You dismiss me before you get drunk and you seem to have a habit of throwing everything around the room when you get drunk,” Merlin muttered to herself. Arthur eyed her suspiciously, but did not ask. “I had them clean and tidy yesterday evening.”

Merlin spent most of the day avoiding Arthur, Morgana, and Gwen, doing all the same chores she had done to clean up Arthur’s drunken tantrum the day before. Of course, when she accidentally walked in on Arthur and Morgana plotting something, likely a jail break for Mordred, she ended up having to muck out the stables as well. Merlin was not upset that she was not being included in the plans. Despite the fact that she wanted to dismiss the dragon as paranoid, the Great Dragon was the title for the oldest dragon alive and he had held it before his fellows were killed. The dragon likely knew full well what he was talking about. Merlin was perfectly content to let Arthur and Morgana engender the child’s affections and gratitude by rescuing him while she had a nice long night of sleep. Had she mentioned her bad luck in Camelot though? When she walked in with Arthur’s supper, Morgana was there again, dressed up for supper with Uther.

“Merlin…” Arthur smiled at her. “We can use Merlin.”

“I trust Merlin,” Morgana agreed. “I better get to supper, though.”

“Uther cannot think you were involved this time,” Arthur agreed. Merlin winced. Morgana strode out without noticing, thankfully.

“So you were plotting to break the Druid boy out of jail earlier?” she groaned. “I was really hoping the two of you would manage this yourself and I could go to bed early and have a nice long night of sleep.”

“I’m going to take him out through the tunnels, but there’s a grate on the exit. All you have to do is meet us there and take the grate off. Then you can sleep,” Arthur told her.

“The giant hole with a grate that leads straight into the woods?” Merlin clarified. Arthur nodded. “I didn’t realize that led out from the dungeons. I suppose it was originally for escape in case of siege or something?”

“I imagine so,” Arthur agreed. “You’re dismissed for the evening. But I need you to be down at that grate with a way to get it open at nine o clock when the guards change.”

“Yes, Arthur,” Merlin murmured. She went back to Gaius’ chambers, for lack of anything else to do, and ended up helping him with his potions and medicines. There were several people in the castle that took something from him every day and he had to make lots of their potions- Morgana’s sleeping draught for her visions, Uther’s remedy for his shoulder, several of the older noblemen and their wives who had trouble sleeping or with headaches or stomachaches. She and Gaius spent a few hours chatting as they worked, Gaius telling her about how each potion worked. It was soothing work.

When the clock struck nine, Merlin said she was going to go check on Arthur, who was upset about the Druid boy’s execution, before he was probably asleep. Gaius laughed her out of the room and thankfully did not notice the fire poker she grabbed on her way out. She stuffed it down her trouser leg in the stairwell and then hurried down to the courtyard and out through the lower town to the spot Arthur had told her to be. He and Mordred were not there yet, but she could feel them moving closer with her magic. She pulled the fire poker out and laid it in the grass, using her magic to take the grate off its hinges instead. She laid it down silently in the grass and waited. Arthur and Mordred soon rushed into view and Arthur helped her set the grate back up. It was nowhere near as steady, a good shove would knock it over, but at least it was not immediately obvious how they had escaped.

“Go get your sleep,” Arthur told her. “I’ll be back sometime tonight. One of the patrols spotted signs of a Druid encampment nearby, so I won’t be too long.”

Merlin nodded. “Be careful,” she begged. She knelt down and Mordred hugged her tightly, silently thanking her. “Be good,” she murmured. Mordred nodded. Arthur took his hand and they hurried into the woods. Merlin grabbed the fire poker, put it back in her trousers and hurried back through the lower town to the castle. Thankfully, they had noticed that the Druid boy was missing and the guards had all swarmed down to the dungeons. So Merlin’s trip back to Gaius’ chambers went unnoticed.

Arthur was back the next morning when Merlin brought his breakfast. He was exhausted and would not wake, but he was in perfect health. Morgana came in without knocking not long after Merlin arrived, startling her out of her reverie, staring at his sleeping face. The way the sunlight from the window hit the pillow, his hair seemed to glow.

“How is he?” Morgana asked. “They succeeded?”

“Well, Arthur’s back and the boy is not, so I imagine they did. Arthur has yet to wake, but it’s just exhaustion. He’s in perfect health.”

“Good.”

“And he has no responsibilities this morning, so I can let him sleep,” Merlin added. Morgana smiled wanly. Merlin knew her own sleep was fitful. With no true knowledge of her powers, just a concern that she might have the Seer’s gift, Morgana had no control over her visions and they plagued her sleeping hours. Any sort of misfortune would play in her head until it came to pass. Unfortunately, Merlin herself had no talent for visions. They made her stomach sick and her head spin, so she had no advice for Morgana. With Arthur obviously needing his sleep, Morgana soon left. Merlin wandered aimlessly about the room. It was mid-April and too warm for a fire. Arthur had not had any drunken tantrums lately, so the chambers were clean and tidy. Other than changing the rushes and cleaning his boots, there was little to do. Though she had no great desire to leave Arthur’s side, Merlin went and fetched fresh rushes and changed the rushes and then cleaned Arthur’s boots so there would be no mud on them if someone suspected he had been involved. She then checked his clothing for suspicious tears or stains, with the same thought in mind, but they were as pristine as always and no one would worry about his blue cloak. He used it infrequently enough that Merlin was certain no one would question it. Arthur finally woke about dinnertime. Merlin had eaten his breakfast and taken the tray back to the kitchens a few hours earlier. Arthur went and assured Morgana that all had gone smoothly before going to training. Merlin was given the afternoon off and ended up helping Gaius deliver his remedies, running hither and thither all over the castle.


	10. The Birth of Excalibur

After Uther finally admitted that the Druid boy was nowhere near the castle, the week running up to Arthur’s birthday, and his coming of age, was full of a sort of organized chaos to prepare for the celebrations. Arthur would be Crown Prince of Camelot, his father’s official heir, with no Regent to help him rule if something happened to Uther. So in addition to being an occasion for a lavish party, it was also an important political event, and the nobles were flooding into Camelot to be present for the party and ceremony despite the rain. In addition, Uther had decided that the knights who had passed Arthur’s test recently would all be knighted that day. One of Morgana’s favorites, Owain, would be knighted then, making him the youngest of the Camelot knights at barely seventeen. He had sent Morgana flowers once with a silly poem to cheer her up and ever since she had been fond of the boy. Arthur was thankfully in a good mood for the whole week-there were four new knights to be knighted, which always pleased him even though he had to spend two days stuck inside because of the rain.

The day of festivities arrived and Arthur ran around hiding from Geoffrey who did not think he could remember the whole sentence that he had to recite back to his father for the ceremony. He only had to say I do, I do, I do, I pledge myself to your service and to the kingdom. It was not difficult and Geoffrey fretting on about it was making Arthur anxious about the ceremony. Merlin used magic to help make his clothes as clean as possible when she washed them and polished his crown until it gleamed. Once it was nearly time for the ceremony and Arthur was all dressed up in his finery, he looked every inch the king he would one day be. Merlin could not hold back her pleased smile at how impressive he looked.

“Knocked you speechless?” Arthur teased. “At least I’ve impressed someone.”

“You’ll impress everyone,” Merlin corrected without thinking about it. Arthur grinned at her, playfully shoving at her shoulder.

“Come on, before I’m late.” He brushed past her and they made their way down to the banquet hall. The banquet hall was full to bursting, all of the knights and nearly all the nobles in attendance. Morgana was flirting with Owain so Merlin made her way over to Gwen. They chatted until Uther started the ceremonies. He knighted the four new knights and then Arthur kneeled before him.

“Do you solemnly swear to govern the people of this kingdom and its dominions according to the statutes, customs and laws laid down by your forebears?” Uther asked.

“I do, Sire,” Arthur swore. See? Easy.

“Do you promise to exercise mercy and justice in your deeds and judgments?”

“I do, Sire.”

“And do you swear allegiance to Camelot, now and for as long as you shall live?”

“I, Arthur Landon Gareth Pendragon, do pledge life and limb to your service and to the protection of the kingdom and its peoples.” Arthur had embellished a little but it was a perfectly good pledge. She could see the knights smiling and silently nudging each other and the nobles nodding sagely. She had known he would impress everyone. Even Uther looked pleased.

“Now being of age and heir apparent, from henceforth, you shall be Crown Prince of Camelot,” Uther decreed.

“So, how does it feel to be servant to the Crown Prince?” Gwen asked. Merlin laughed.

“Exactly the same, though I’ve no doubt that washing his socks is now supposed to be a greater honor and privilege.”

“Oh, hush, you’re proud of him, really.”

“Not at all,” Merlin shook her head.

“I can see it in your face,” she countered.

“Well, those socks are very clean. Of course I’m proud of them,” Merlin joked. Gwen rolled her eyes and laughed. Just then, some knight in black armor on horseback burst through the stained glass window. Everyone startled. There were a fair few screams and gasps and every last knight drew his sword in a great ring of steel. “What in the world?” she murmured to herself. Uther looked just as shocked, clearly murmuring something similar.

The knight threw down his gauntlet in wordless challenge. Arthur sheathed his shield, going to pick it up. But Owain wanted to impress Morgana and he got there first. “I, Sir Owain, accept your challenge,” he announced. Merlin could hear Morgana’s gasp of horror.

“Single combat, noon tomorrow, to the death,” the knight pronounced with a hoarse masculine voice. Morgana was not the only one who gasped then. Owain himself looked a little shaky at the prospect of a fight to the death. There was no way this could end well.

It did not. Morgana begged Arthur to take Owain’s place but the Knight’s Code would not allow him to do so. Morgana gave Owain her favor for luck and all it did was flutter to the ground when he was slain on the battlefield. The knight threw his gauntlet down again. Arthur tried to leap onto the battlefield, but his father restrained him and Sir Pellinore leapt down in his place. The terms were the same. Merlin felt sick about the whole thing.

Gaius finally told her his suspicions about the mysterious knight. Sir Tristan de Bois, Ygraine’s brother, Arthur’s uncle, had been dead nearly as long as his sister. His tomb was disturbed, the stone shattered. Gaius thought someone had brought him back from the dead to wreak havoc. Apparently, Tristan and Ygraine had been very close and Tristan had been disconsolate upon her death. Because she died in childbirth, he blamed Uther for it and challenged him to a duel to the death for killing his sister. Uther had taken up the challenge and killed him. As Tristan lay dying, he swore to return for justice. No one had thought anything of it at the time, as the man had no magic of his own, but clearly someone had remembered his vow. Gaius feared nothing would stop the dead man until he had gotten his revenge for his beloved sister. Merlin did not think that combat to the death was at all fair if one party was already dead.

Unfortunately, Arthur could no more intercede for Sir Pellinore than he could for Sir Owain. The fight proceeded. Sir Pellinore clearly ran his opponent through, but as Merlin had feared, a dead man could not fall. Sir Pellinore fell with the next blow, too shocked to react in time. This time Arthur threw down his own gauntlet before anything else could be done. His dead uncle picked it up. Merlin rushed off, certain she was going to at least lose her breakfast. She had to find something to save Arthur.

Geoffrey was unsurprised to see her and did not seem any more surprised that she was trying to find a weapon that could kill a dead man. Clearly he had recognized the crest of the late Queen’s brother. He pointed her to a story that gave her exactly what she wanted. A sword burnished in a dragon’s breath would kill anything, alive or dead. The tale was more likely history than legend. Merlin just so happened to have a friend whose father was a blacksmith and a dragon who wanted Arthur to live. Merlin thanked Geoffrey and ran off to get herself a sword to burnish in a dragon’s breath. As Geoffrey likely was unaware of the dragon below the keep’s fondness for Arthur, he was understandably confused at her thinking it a valid solution, but she had no time to stop and explain. She finally found Gwen in Morgana’s chambers.

“Merlin,” Gwen was startled but smiled at her, “What are you doing here?”

“I've come to ask a favor.” 

“Yes?”

“I'm not sure how to ask it.” Merlin knew this would sound crazy.

“Ask, Merlin. You know I'd grant you anything. I mean, not anything. Obviously, not anything. What is it you want?” Gwen managed to stop babbling on her own, thankfully.

“I've come to ask for a sword. The strongest sword your father's ever made,” Merlin explained.

“What for?” Gwen was rightfully confused.

“To save Arthur.” Why did she do anything recently? Thankfully Gwen agreed. They went down to her house and Gwen gave her a sword. Apparently, it was the best one her father had ever made and he was saving it, unwilling to part with it. Merlin had no sympathy, if it meant Arthur would live. Merlin hurried down to the dragon next.

Though the dragon was reluctant, such a weapon could be very dangerous after all, Merlin eventually begged enough, cajoled enough that he agreed. But he made her swear that only Arthur would ever wield the weapon. Merlin agreed. That was a small price to pay. She only wanted it to save Arthur’s life, after all. She went back up to Gaius’ chambers, in hopes of getting some sleep that night, and perhaps even some admiration. She was not expecting the news Gaius gave her when she arrived. Merlin stared at Gaius, eyes wide, mouth gaping, holding the newly dragon-fire-burnished sword awkwardly at her side.

“You did what?” she asked.

“I drugged Arthur. You should give the sword to Uther, since he’s the one who’s going to be fighting.”

“No,” Merlin shook her head forcefully. “I promised the dragon that only Arthur would wield this sword. I’m not giving it to Uther. Maybe you should have thought of the fact that more people will help Arthur win than Uther before you drugged him. I won’t lose the dragon’s goodwill, Gaius. He’s too helpful.”

“Fine,” Gaius agreed. Merlin didn’t like the look in his eyes though.

“I’m going to go guard Arthur,” Merlin announced. “He sleeps with his door unlocked because he’s normally such a light sleeper and I doubt you thought to lock all the doors on your way out.”

“No,” Gaius admitted, clearly reluctantly. “I did not.” Merlin nodded and hurried back out the door before Gaius could think to ask her about the sword again. She rushed down out of Gaius’ tower and across the courtyard, waving back at the knights standing guard, and up into the castle proper. No one stopped her as she ran through the hallways, dodging out of the way of the sword. Everyone was accustomed to Arthur getting snappish and short-tempered before a duel or tournament. He often sat up long into the night, practicing over and over. No one thought to question that perhaps Merlin had not been ordered to fetch the sword she was carrying out of the armory for Arthur to practice with in his chambers. Merlin was very glad for the lack of curiosity. She wanted the sword behind locked doors as soon as possible.

Once she and the sword were safely in Arthur’s chambers, Merlin locked all the entrances in a rush. As horrible as it sounded, she was not sure she trusted Gaius not to drug her too and give the sword to Uther despite her and the dragon’s protests. Frankly, Merlin agreed with the dragon that a sword that could kill a wraith was probably not something that should be in anyone’s hands for any length of time, much less Uther’s. Also, Merlin doubted that a wraith just fell to the ground when it died. Someone would have to provide an explanation. For Arthur, Merlin would take that risk, but not for Uther. Once Merlin had gotten ahold of her nerves, she dragged the cot out of the servant’s antechamber she was supposed to use to set it before the fire. She tucked the sword under the mattress, just in case someone managed to get past the locked doors, and tried to get what little rest she could.

Merlin did not sleep well and woke at dawn, still nearly sick with nerves. Arthur was not ready to be king, especially not the Once and Future King that the dragon spoke of, but there was no way for her to help Uther either. Merlin could not do magic, not that she actually knew any spells to kill a wraith, and she would not give Uther the sword. Merlin took Arthur’s keys, hid them under her tunic and locked the servant’s entrance behind her as she went to get something for her and Arthur to eat.

Miraculously, no one questioned Merlin’s fake cheer as she got breakfast and hurried back up to Arthur. Merlin let herself back in and it was almost like any other morning: Arthur snoozing away while Merlin put breakfast on the table and eyed the room to see what chores were undone. Of course, on a normal morning, Merlin and Arthur weren’t locked in with a sword that could kill a wraith and Arthur wasn’t drugged to keep him out of a duel. Merlin opened all the curtains and set about getting as many of her chores done as she could without leaving the room. She put the cot back in the antechamber first and put the breakfast on the table with a napkin over it. Merlin tidied and straightened and made a neat pile of dirty clothes to take to the laundresses and dusted and swept, apparently there was a broom in the antechamber, and cleaned the windows and chimney with magic and polished Arthur’s armor and sword. By the time she had done all that, only a few hours had passed and Arthur was still asleep, but if Merlin could get him to waken soon, they would have time to get food in his belly and get him dressed and down to the tourney for the challenge. How had the fate of a King and his kingdom come down to whether or not Merlin woke a prince? But Arthur was not ready to be King, of age and Crown Prince or not.

Merlin made the decision: she was going to wake Arthur if she could. Arthur was merely sleeping, after all. She tried the usual means of waking Arthur, shaking him and turning his face into the sunlight and saying his name loudly. Of course, none of them worked. The spells Merlin tried failed as often as they worked, but the sort of instinctive magic she used when she was not thinking of any specific spell was always very powerful. So Merlin just set her hand on Arthur’s brow and thought “Awake”. She felt her magic surge up in answer and there was a flash from his eyes and Arthur groaned loudly.

“I feel awful,” Arthur grumbled.

“That’s because Gaius drugged you. I’ve been trying to wake you up all morning,” Merlin lied. “Are you going to stay awake this time?”

“What? Why did Gaius drug me?” Arthur asked, sitting up hurriedly. He slumped down just as quickly, clutching his head.

“I believe it was under your father’s orders. He wanted you to sleep through the duel.”

“He doesn’t think I’ll win,” Arthur murmured sadly.

“To be fair, I know that Sir Owain and Sir Pellinore got strikes in on the knight, but neither of their swords had a drop of blood on them,” Merlin offered. “Water first, or food?”  
“What?” Arthur looked up. “I saw them land blows too. What do you mean their swords were clean?”

“The servants have all been buzzing about it.” That was the truth. “Their squires brought their swords into the armory and they were as clean as though they had been practicing with a dummy. Several of the kitchen maids think the squires were too upset with grief and cleaned the swords without even realizing. But you saw that knight: he took blows that looked to be lethal and kept fighting like nothing had touched him.”

“That’s true,” Arthur begrudgingly agreed. “But that’s why I couldn’t let any more of my knights die in my place.”

“And it’s why your father doesn’t want you to fight,” Merlin pointed out.

“I laid down the challenge. I have to fight.”

“Alright, let’s start with breakfast,” Merlin suggested. Arthur nodded, slowly sitting up and then standing, putting a hand on Merlin’s shoulder to steady himself as he crossed to the table.

“What sword is this?” Arthur asked as he began to eat, waving at Merlin to join him.

“It’s for you,” Merlin said. “For the duel.”

“Who’s it from? Morgana?”

“No,” Merlin shook her head. Arthur gave her a look. “I asked Gwen for her father’s strongest sword. I think it’ll draw blood.” Arthur started to complain but then closed his mouth with a grim nod.

“Thank you, Merlin,” Arthur said instead. He picked up the blade with his left hand, turning it a little to get a feel for it while he kept eating. “It’s very well-balanced. A fine sword that Gwen’s father should be proud of.”

“She said he thought it was the best sword he’d ever made,” Merlin told him. Arthur nodded absently and sat the sword back on the table, turning his attention back to his breakfast. Merlin followed his example and did the same. After breakfast, Merlin unlocked the doors and Arthur gave her a tight smile with a bit of relief in his eyes. Then they got Arthur into his chain mail and armor and she handed Arthur the new sword. He slid it into his belt without a second thought and Merlin picked up his helmet. They had only enough time to get down to the tourney before the duel was set to start.

Arthur strode calmly through the castle with Merlin on his heels, nodding regally at the servants wishing him luck as they passed. Merlin knew the seeming confidence was just a mask over the prince’s nerves, but she also knew better than to say anything in the open hallway. Arthur hated the idea that anyone might think him weak. They arrived at the same time as Uther did. Uther was livid, but he could not say a word in protest of Arthur going through with the challenge in front of the assembled audience.

“Be careful,” Uther decided on saying instead. “Good luck, son.”

“Thank you, father,” Arthur replied with a smile. Uther went to take his place in the king’s box and Merlin handed Arthur his helmet.

“I have no doubt you will win this challenge,” Merlin whispered. “Just trust your skill. You are the greatest knight in all Albion.”

“Thank you, Merlin,” Arthur replied back, his own voice pitched low. “And I don’t want my wine watered down tonight. We’ll be celebrating.” Arthur’s voice cracked a little.

“Have faith,” Merlin urged. “And even though you don’t need it, good luck, sire.” Arthur nodded and pulled his helmet on and strode out onto the field, facing the wraith. Merlin murmured a prayer to the Goddess that Arthur would deal a lethal blow before the wraith could. The sword would work, but only if Arthur could get the first deadly strike. Otherwise, he might as well have had no sword at all for all the good one burnished in dragon’s fire did.

The battle between the two knights was swift, each moving quickly and effectively. Merlin was nearly biting through her own lip in concern. The Black Knight was clearly an expert swordsman. Thankfully, Arthur was better, since he had the human foibles of fatigue and hesitation. Finally Arthur struck a clean blow through his opponent’s defenses and the sword sliced through the chain mail. For a moment, the Black Knight was frozen on the blade. Then he sort of shook and burst apart. Arthur’s eyes went wide with shock, and his head turned to his king. So did Merlin’s. Thankfully, Gaius had told Uther and he was already prepared with a short speech.

“Clearly, my fears were well-founded that this knight was no mortal man,” Uther announced. “I wished to keep panic from spreading, but given his unnatural behavior, it was clear that he was a wraith. Arthur has bested him in proper combat and we are saved from this evil magic. There is no reason for anyone to fear.” Everyone seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, but Merlin suspected more of them were relieved that Uther wasn’t staging a manhunt to find the sorcerer than that there was an explanation for what had happened on the field.

Arthur strode off the field in Merlin’s direction and stuffed the sword into her hands, grabbing her by the nape and dragging her back up to his chambers. Merlin hurried along; trying to make it look less suspicious to the few servants they passed. She hoped they would just think that Arthur wanted a more physical form of celebration and that was the cause for their hurry. It was hardly something unheard-of, after all, and it would be an innocent enough rumor.

“What did you do to that sword?” Arthur demanded once they were behind closed doors.

“Uh…” Merlin was caught between having no idea what to say if she lied and not being certain if the truth was safe.

“If that was a wraith, a normal sword couldn’t have killed him. What did you do? Is it enchanted? What?” Well, consorting with dragons was probably less execution-worthy than enchantments, wasn’t it?

“I may have gotten the dragon your father has below the keep to burnish it with dragon fire,” Merlin admitted. Arthur gaped at her.

“You went to the dragon?”

“It was the only thing Geoffrey could find that would kill a wraith,” Merlin replied. “I had to ask. I couldn’t let you die.”

“And it agreed?” Arthur murmured wonderingly, taking the sword back. “That’s what these markings are from?”

“Yes,” Merlin nodded. Suddenly she remembered that she had not yet said, “But no one else is ever to wield that sword. I promised.” Arthur blinked at her, thinking through the statement.

“You will put this somewhere no one will ever find it accidentally,” he ordered. “Knights borrow each other’s swords all the time and as my manservant, your word is my word. I would not have your promise broken, even if it was made only to an overgrown lizard.”

“Thank you,” Merlin beamed at him.

“Yes, yes, now get me out of this armor so you can go hide that sword somewhere safe,” Arthur grumbled impatiently. He continued, in a softer tone, “Someday, you will tell me exactly how you managed to convince one of my father’s imprisoned enemies to save my life.”

“Of course, Arthur,” Merlin agreed, stepping forward to start undoing buckles and removing the armor. Once Arthur was in his usual attire, Merlin set off for the lake of Avalon. A sword burnished in dragon’s fire could not rust and there was no chance anyone would find it there. Besides, Arthur certainly would not have need of it in any normal capacity, so it did not need to be very close. Although the lake really was not that far from the castle: the journey there and back could be made within a night. The castle was an unreliable place for things that needed to remain hidden.

As Merlin really should have anticipated, the dragon was calling her insistently when she got back to the castle and Merlin had to go straight down to greet him.

“So… does Arthur live?” the dragon asked. Merlin grinned up at the dragon, nodding.

“The sword worked perfectly,” Merlin told him. “Gaius and Uther almost ruined everything. They drugged him-Arthur. Gaius wanted me to give the sword to Uther. I ended up locking the sword and myself in Arthur’s room until less than an hour before the fight. And I had to wake Arthur up with magic.”

“Gaius is too much Uther’s man,” the dragon grumbled. “But at least everything went to plan despite your concerns and his interference.”

“Yes. And I told Arthur that you burnished the sword and he wasn’t angry,” Merlin added. “I think he’s already more lenient than Uther. Plus, this means I don’t have to keep as many things from him as I have been. Of course, I wouldn’t make him choose between his father, his duty to uphold the laws and a mere servant, but I can tell him how to fix the problem if there’s someone with magic trying to kill him.”

“That is good news indeed,” the dragon agreed. “And is Arthur keeping the sword, then?”

“No. I told him that you made me promise that no one else would ever use it and he was afraid that it would be difficult to keep that promise if he kept it. He told me to hide it so no one would innocently or not so innocently try to borrow it.”

“He is already becoming wise. The seeds of what will one day be a mighty king are already germinating.”

“I put it in the lake that’s the gateway to Avalon. It can’t rust and no one can find it there. Plus, if Arthur ever needs the sword, it won’t be far.”

“Good choice, young warlock. You have done well.”

“Thank you. I should probably get back to Gaius before he wants me to clean out the leech tank or something awful.” The dragon just nodded and flew off, up towards the ledge above him, for once allowing her the last word. Merlin hurried off to her chambers and thanked the Goddess when she found that Gaius was already asleep.


	11. You Can Never Go Home Again

Merlin had been hoping for some peace and quiet, maybe even a letter from home. She knew better than to expect peace and quiet by now. Even when there was no emergency, Arthur could be in a horrible mood and throw things around his room and then yell at her about how it had gotten messy. But Merlin had not expected that it would be her own mother who brought the emergency this time. Her mother showed up with a blackened eye and tales of some new warlord named Kanen who had a group of about fifty bandits supporting him. Apparently Kearia had left Cenred’s castle in a tiff and had locked herself in her own castle. Cenred himself would not cross into Kearia’s territory and no one could get any sort of message to the woman herself to acquire aid against the bandits. Also, the only recent magical visitors had been Druids, who would not help drive the men off for fear they should somehow break their oaths to harm none. Merlin’s mother, in her infinite wisdom, had come to ask Uther for aid. Somehow, in her asking Arthur for time off to go home with her mother, to hopefully clear this mess up herself, Arthur got her mother an audience with Uther. Though he clearly recognized the name of the town, he did not say a word about it, merely refusing aid because sending knights or soldiers into Cenred’s land would be an act of war. Also, he had to know better than to send men of Camelot into Kearia’s territory. She would certainly take notice of that. Of course, neither Morgana nor Arthur was aware of that. They were both disappointed in Uther’s decision. Gwen graciously offered Merlin some armor and a sword, none of which she had need of until Morgana announced that she and Gwen were going to accompany them. Merlin wanted to scream with frustration. There went the possibility of using magic to fix this. She would not burden them both with her secret as well as Morgana’s.

They set out on Morgana’s horses and Arthur left with the patrol, but somehow Arthur ended up at their campsite by that evening. Thankfully, he and Morgana got into an argument, because her mother was still grumbling about Merlin making herself look like a boy and serving Arthur. Like Merlin had planned that! And Merlin may have almost hurt Arthur with her sword when he showed up out of the blue, which she doubted he would forget anytime soon.

Finally they made it to Ealdor. Of course, Kanen and his men were running amok. Poor Matthew was clearly beside himself, having tried to hide the food they were trying to steal. Arthur threw his sword into a post and a fight erupted. Merlin spooked a few horses and did as much as she could with her magic to help without being noticed by Arthur, Morgana, or Gwen. Once Kanen and his men had retreated, Merlin finally saw Will. He crushed her in a bear hug.

“I missed you. Have things gotten better since your letter?”

“Yeah,” Merlin nodded. “Prince Prat apparently does have some redeeming qualities.” She nodded over at Arthur. “And I’ve got more friends now and the other servants at least respect me. And Gaius is nicer.”

“Good,” Will grinned at her. “Are you going to introduce me to Prince Charming and that lady knight?” he teased. Merlin made a face back at him.

“That lady knight is the Lady Morgana, Vivienne’s daughter. She’s too good for the likes of you,” she retorted. Will licked her nose in retaliation and Merlin had a spell to make him itch on the tip of her tongue when Arthur interrupted.

“Merlin! Gather the villagers; I need to talk to them.”

“Yeah, in a minute. I'm just talking...” she called back.

“Now, Merlin,” Arthur ordered. “There isn't much time.” Will made a face.

“Now, Merlin,” he mocked quietly. “Still a prat?”

“Yes, your pratness,” Merlin grumbled, nodding at Will that yes, Arthur was still a prat. She managed to easily get the villagers rounded up. Everyone knew that Merlin had power and it gave her their respect, since she had never turned it against them.

Arthur started in on a speech, like he was on the knight’s training field. “I know Kanen's kind. He'll be back. And when he is, you must be ready for him. First of all, we have to prepare for...”

Will cut him off, “Am I the only one wondering who the hell this is?” Will liked things to be done in proper order, such as introducing oneself before one starts giving orders. Merlin had to say she agreed.

“I'm Prince Arthur of Camelot,” Arthur replied, as though everyone should already know. Really, he should know better.

“Yeah, and, er, I'm Prince Daniel of Ealdor,” one of the other villagers scoffed. Merlin held back a laugh.

“Keep quiet. He's here to help us,” her mother scolded Daniel. Once Merlin and Morgana, who Merlin introduced as Vivienne’s daughter, had assured the villagers that Arthur really was the Crown Prince of Camelot and a knight in his own right, the rest of Arthur’s speech went much better. Will thought he was a total prat, but the rest of the villagers agreed that something had to be done about Kanen and if the Crown Prince of Camelot was the only one who would lead, they would follow him. Arthur put the men of the village through sword training while the women, under Morgana’s supervision, laid traps for Kanen’s men. They were outnumbered, after all, and Kanen’s men had far more training than the villagers did. Merlin and Matthew went and set up a lookout post, which Matthew manned. When Matthew came back, slung across a horse with an arrow in his back, Arthur agreed to train the women to fight as well. Merlin managed to bring Matthew back from the brink of death, which thankfully, everyone from Camelot was too busy to notice. Matthew merely stayed in his house, still weak and easily exhausted.

Kanen returned on Beltane. Only Merlin seemed to remember the day, as everyone was running around nervously, fiddling with armor and weapons and checking the traps. Merlin almost told Arthur about her magic before the fight, but Morgana interrupted, saying that Kanen and his men were almost upon them. Merlin would just have to hope that everything would work itself out if Arthur saw her using magic in the fight.

In a way, it did work out. Arthur thought Will was the one with magic, the one who knocked the thieves to the ground. But then Will jumped in the way of a crossbow bolt that Kanen had aimed at Arthur and when he turned back around from killing Kanen, Will was on the ground in Merlin’s arms, dying. She knew that saving Will would be much harder than saving Matthew had been. Merlin only just had enough power to heal the wound so that it was no longer fatal. Thankfully, Arthur had to insist that they return to Camelot almost immediately. Merlin spent the rest of the time before they left at Will’s side, making sure that he did not get an infection after she had spent so much effort making sure he would live. But Arthur and Morgana and Gwen all thought that Will had died and there had just not yet been time for his rites, because the first pyre built had all of Kanen’s men who had died stacked on it and of course they would not put their own dead with their enemies. Arthur, of course, apologized that they must return beforehand, but Merlin was glad of it because Will was not dead, even though he should be, and there would be no rites.

Given all that had happened in the days after Arthur killed the wraith, it was unsurprising that the sword and the dragon did not come up in conversation with Arthur until they were returning to Camelot. Arthur had needed some time to process and then they were both too busy to worry about something already done and dusted. Merlin was quiet, worrying about Will, and the girls were quiet in respect of Merlin’s silence. Arthur was quiet in awkwardness, unsure of what to say. He was not accustomed to being the one who should be comforting someone in their supposed grief. But the girls purposefully sequestered themselves on the opposite side of the campfire and snuggled into their bedrolls as soon as they had finished their meal.

“Merlin,” Arthur got her attention. She looked up. “You knew… that Will was a sorcerer.”

“A warlock,” Merlin corrected, telling her own truth as Will’s. “Will’s never studied magic. He was born with his powers. But yeah, I knew.”

Arthur seemed not to hear the first part of Merlin’s reply, as he said nothing in answer. “Is that why you thought it was a good idea to go asking a dragon for help, idiot?” he asked with a fond tone.

“I suppose?” Merlin shrugged. There was not really an answer for her to give. She had gone to the dragon because she had been called the first time. They lapsed back into silence for a moment. “Arthur, if Will had lived, what would you have done?” If you had realized it was me, what would you have done?

“I don’t believe that it’s justice to kill a man for saving my life,” Arthur replied quietly. “Father banned magic because it’s harmful. It hurts people, makes them do things they don’t want to. But your friend was helping his people and hurting only those who would have them starve. I’ve killed many people for similar reasons, I just used a sword or a crossbow or a mace. Besides, Will was in Essetir, anyway. I have no authority there.”

“Thank you,” Merlin mumbled. “I think I should try to sleep.”

“Yes,” Arthur nodded. “Get some rest.” Merlin slid into her bedroll and closed her eyes, trying not to cry audibly. Will had been her dearest childhood friend and now he had very nearly died. She still had not been able to really come to terms with that. After a long moment, Merlin felt a large, warm hand rest on her shoulder. She rolled to face Arthur and Arthur ran his fingers through Merlin’s hair, a reassuring, soothing gesture. It lulled Merlin to sleep and she was not sure if it was a dream or not when she heard Arthur whisper, “I’m here, Merlin. You’re safe.” The next morning, Arthur was standing guard a little ways away and Gwen was getting Morgana out of her bedroll when Merlin awoke. The ride back to Camelot was equally as quiet as the day before but Arthur looked a little more at ease, despite his fatigue, and Merlin no longer felt as though she could still smell the funeral pyre of Kanen’s men, who had had to be disposed of before they began to smell. Instead, the smell of leather seemed to hang around her, a smell that reminded her of horses and Arthur, living things.

They made it back to Camelot in time for dinner, and the only person near the high table who didn’t still smell of horses and sweat was Uther. Thankfully Uther was just pleased that Morgana was home safe and sound and did not get too upset with anyone. He complained, of course. He fussed at Morgana for endangering herself unnecessarily; he groused at Arthur for not following his orders in following them to Ealdor instead of staying with the patrol. Apparently it had rained for five days while they were in Ealdor, which everyone knew improved no one’s mood. But Merlin was not ordered to spend any time in the stocks by the time she was trailing Arthur up to his chambers, which left Merlin more pleased than displeased with the situation. Arthur sank into the bath Merlin had ordered to be ready when dinner was over on Arthur’s behalf.

“Merlin, come sit with me,” he asked, a request disguised as an order. Merlin settled on the floor beside Arthur’s bathtub. “Will you tell me about how you convinced the dragon to burnish a sword for me?”

“It’s not the first time I’d spoken to him. I was exploring the castle and got turned around, ended up on the stairs down to where he’s kept,” Merlin started. “He likes you. Says there’s prophecies that one day you’ll be the greatest king that Albion will ever know. So I was in the library and asked Geoffrey what could kill a wraith. Gaius already knew what the Black Knight was. He told me, and your father I suppose. I assume he wanted me to try to talk you out of fighting him.”

“Like I’d listen to you,” Arthur scoffed. Merlin just shrugged.

“Well, the only answer Geoffrey could give me was either magic or a sword burnished in dragon’s fire. Of course, magic is not an option.”

“Of course,” Arthur agreed absently.

“So I knew I had to try to get the sword. I went and asked Gwen for the strongest sword her father had ever made. She kindly gave it to me. I took it, wrapped in cheese cloth, down to the dragon. I just asked politely. Told him you’d challenged the wraith and needed a weapon that could kill it so it didn’t kill you. He made me promise that only you would use it and then he shot fire at the sword. It glowed white-hot, but it was already cool to the touch when I picked it back up. Then I went back to my room to sleep. Gaius told me he’d drugged you. He wanted me to give the sword to your father, but I’d promised, so I brought the sword here and locked all the doors.”

“I suppose it would have been ill-done for you to give a sword burnished by dragon’s fire to the dragon’s jailor,” Arthur agreed. Merlin nodded.

“A sword burnished in dragon’s fire can kill anything,” Merlin replied, just for something to say. She dipped the cloth into Arthur’s bath and started washing his back for him.

“Thank you,” Arthur murmured, leaning forward obligingly. She gently scrubbed him clean. They finished the bath in silence, Merlin helping Arthur rinse his hair before fetching the towel for him. Once Arthur was in his sleep pants, he dismissed Merlin, who wandered back to her own rooms for a long, well-deserved sleep.


	12. Unicorn Curse

Merlin got a full week and a couple days before there was more upheaval. She told Arthur a little about the dragon at his request; Arthur gave her something resembling an actual lesson in swordplay rather than that horrid disaster he had put her through before the tournament; they settled into something that was almost like friends, except Merlin was Arthur’s servant and neither one of them could forget that for more than a moment. Even the rainy days, Arthur was in generally good spirits. Of course, nothing lasts forever, and despite Merlin almost looking forward to the hunt because Arthur was excited for it, it did not go well at all. Arthur killed a unicorn. And the next morning, all the crops in the kingdom had withered and died.

Of course, Uther refused to pay any heed to Gaius’ warnings about curses befalling those who had slain a unicorn, but Merlin was not going to let it go so easily. Arthur himself looked a trifle unnerved by the prospect, at least.

“Merlin,” Arthur whirled around and pinned her in against the door the moment it had closed behind them. “Your Will, what did he know of curses?”

“Not much,” Merlin admitted. “But magic is permitted in Essetir and we all know that slaying a mythic creature can have unforeseen consequences. A unicorn is not a monster. It’s fully possible that either someone set this curse to punish you or it’s part and parcel of slaying a unicorn.”

“It’s not possible for all the grain to wither so completely in one night,” Arthur agreed, taking a step back and crossing the room as he continued speaking. “But why punish all my people? I am one man and the whole kingdom is now faced with starvation.”

Merlin followed him across the room as she answered. “You are the Crown Prince, Arthur. Everyone in Camelot is under your protection,” she reminded him. “Most of your decisions will affect the entire kingdom. Is it truly any surprise that a curse placed on you also would include your subjects?”

“But it isn’t right,” Arthur protested. “They are innocent.”

“Just because it isn’t fair doesn’t mean it isn’t true,” Merlin pointed out. Arthur nodded his acknowledgment.

“But what can I do to lift the curse? If something can be done, it can be un-done, can it not?” Arthur looked up at her pleadingly, silently begging for a course of action.  
“I would assume there has to be some way to lift the curse: some challenge to accept or some ritual, something that must be done. But I have no knowledge of what it could be.”

“Who would know?” Arthur grumbled. Merlin thought hard, not wanting to have no answer for Arthur. Maybe that old man had not been a trick of the light?

“I thought I saw an old man in Druidic robes standing in the clearing behind you right after you killed the unicorn. He was gone the next moment.”

“That’s what you were staring at, then?” Arthur asked. She nodded. “Well he probably knows since he seems to be our most likely candidate for setting the curse but we have no way of finding him. If he can appear and disappear in a moment, we could search all of Albion and never once find him.” They both lapsed into silence. It was true.

“I’ll go ask the dragon,” Merlin announced. “He’ll probably know.”

“I will go with you,” Arthur replied firmly, the matter was clearly not open to discussion. Merlin just conceded and led Arthur down to the dragon’s cave. She took the route that bypassed the guards in front of the dungeons, since she would not be able to distract them away with Arthur by her side. They strode into the cave side by side; the Dragon was already on the perch in the middle of the cave, waiting for them. Merlin hid a smile at the posturing. Arthur froze, staring at the Dragon.

“Arthur killed a unicorn,” Merlin announced. “How do we fix this?”

“So that’s why all of Camelot is cursed,” the Dragon shook his head, making a soft laughing sound. Merlin sighed heavily at him. “Alright, you have to go to Anhora, the keeper of the unicorn.”

“Is he an old man in white Druidic robes?” she asked.

“Yes…”

“Well, at least you weren’t hallucinating,” Arthur sneered.

“Arthur, you should have more faith in Merlin,” the Dragon chided. “After all, you two are…”

“We do not need a prophecy lesson!” Merlin hurriedly spoke over the Dragon, who thankfully just smirked at her and settled back down instead of ignoring her. “Where should we go to find Anhora? There’s a very limited amount of food left and Uther is already talking about rations not including the people.”

“Go back to where the unicorn was slain. Anhora will come to you.”

“Thank you.”

“Yes, thank you,” Arthur echoed. Merlin managed not to gawk as they left but it was a near thing. She had not thought that Arthur would apply Uther’s diplomacy lessons to a dragon, but apparently he did. “I’ll take care of Father. Go get the horses ready,” Arthur ordered as they reached the main level of the castle again. Merlin agreed, hurrying off to the stables. She was glad to not have to be in the same room as Uther. That man had a frightening temper.

Merlin let herself into the stables and Faolan smiled at her. “What today, Merlin?”

“Arthur wants to go for a ride,” Merlin told him, smiling back. Faolan was always so friendly.

“I’ll saddle Llamrei and Duane for you,” Faolan told her. He headed for the tack room. Merlin followed, Faolan liked to chat while he worked and hopefully would get her mind off what Anhora might ask of Arthur. “Getting dragged on another hunt, are you?”

“I hope not. Arthur just told me to get the horses ready,” Merlin told him. Faolan handed Duane’s tack to her and hefted Llamrei’s tack before heading to their stables. He got Llamrei saddled and bridled first.

“Well, hopefully you’ll get lucky and Arthur just wants to get out of the citadel to get his mind off this plague.”

“Hopefully,” Merlin agreed with a wan smile.

“Has Gaius told you what he thinks happened?”

“Gaius thinks it’s a curse, but don’t spread that around. It could cause panic,” Merlin told him. Faolan took Duane’s tack from her and Llamrei followed them to Duane’s stable while Faolan saddled and bridled Duane.

“Maybe you’re going after the sorcerer, then,” Faolan suggested. “Don’t worry. I won’t tell anyone. People panicking means they all want horses at once. I have a vested interest in wanting everyone to remain calm.”

“True,” Merlin chuckled softly. “Thanks.”

“It is my job,” Faolan reminded her. “Be safe.”

“I will,” Merlin promised, leading the horses out into the courtyard. Arthur was hurrying down the stairs into the courtyard and smiled in relief that the horses were ready. Merlin realized why as she caught sight of Uther behind him, looking none too pleased. Llamrei was well-trained, so Merlin just pulled herself onto Duane and trusted Llamrei to wait on her master. Of course, she did. Arthur swung up into the saddle gracefully and urged Llamrei into a trot. Duane followed after the other horse without any prompting and thankfully Uther never caught up as they left the citadel. They rode back into the woods, both of them finding the spot with ease. It had only been the day before after all.

“How long do you think we’ll have to wait?” Arthur asked.

“Patience is a virtue,” Merlin reminded him in lieu of admitting that she had no idea. Arthur gave her a look of disdain and refused to speak to her further. Thankfully, it was not a long wait. After a few moments of serenity in the clearing, birdsong, the soft rustling of wind in the leaves, dappled sunshine, the same man Merlin had seen before appeared.

“Arthur Pendragon,” he nodded at Arthur, ignoring Merlin. “Have you come seeking me?”

“Yes,” Arthur nodded. “I wish to free my land, my people from this curse. I was told to find you.”

“Who did you ask?” Anhora questioned.

“The dragon,” Arthur answered warily.

“Ah,” Anhora nodded. “Then I know what to ask of you. I am an old man, yes, but I shall not die of a natural lifespan for a long time yet. I shall pose you this question and you must bear judgment as though you were already sitting on your father’s throne.”

“Ask me,” Arthur agreed. Merlin had to admit, this was easier than what she had been fearing.

“I have magic. I have always had it and I cannot help but use it. However, I am bound by the same vows as the Druids. I can do no harm. Would you have me executed per your father’s ban on all magic… or not?” Arthur froze, staring at the man. Merlin winced. This answer would be difficult for him. Arthur did not believe in killing people who had done no harm, but he also wished to honor and please his father. Anhora was simply standing there, arms crossed as he waited. Merlin knew he was in no danger, and neither was she, but her heart was racing anyway. Arthur finally seemed to come to some sort of compromise after an age.

“I cannot condemn someone who has done no harm to death,” he admitted. “But neither can I ignore the laws of the kingdom. Laws are there to ensure order and peace. Therefore, I would not have you executed, but I would have to ask you to leave Camelot and not return.” Anhora nodded slowly, a small smile spreading across his face.

“Well, I think that is proof enough,” he agreed. “Your kingdom will be as it was before in the morning. The crops will be restored.”

“Proof?” Merlin asked.

“For the curse laid upon he who slays a unicorn to be lifted, he must prove that he also has a pure heart,” Anhora explained. Then he disappeared. Merlin’s horse startled a little and Arthur had to lean over and grab the bridle to get Duane to stop dancing nervously about.

“Well, I suppose we go back before it gets dark and Father really panics and just hope he was telling the truth,” Arthur said with a sigh. Merlin shrugged.

“I think he looked like he was telling the truth,” she said.

“Yes, and you’re an idiot,” Arthur grumbled. He was clearly still not recovered from the latest prat mood yet. Hopefully he would feel better when his people were no longer in danger of starving by winter in the morning. They rode back to the castle in silence, Arthur too grumpy and worried to make conversation and Merlin unwilling to provoke him. 

Uther and Morgana, with Gwen trailing along behind her, were waiting in the courtyard when they got back. Merlin took the opportunity to take the horses back to the stables as a method of hopefully escaping Uther’s ire. Gwen and Morgana were still waiting when she got back, though Uther and Arthur were nowhere in sight.

“Well, did you find whoever it was Arthur was looking for?” Morgana asked.

“We did. Hopefully things will look better in the morning,” Merlin replied. “Did Uther drag Arthur off to have him flogged? Did I miss all the excitement?”

“No, he just wanted to have a private discussion,” Gwen told her. Merlin pouted. She had been hoping for more amusing excitement. Morgana laughed at her as she turned around and swept back into the castle. Merlin and Gwen trailed obediently after her. Merlin fetched supper and went to Arthur’s chambers to wait on him to return. He dismissed her as soon as he arrived and Merlin grudgingly anticipated having to clean up the mess from another drunken tantrum in the morning. She went back to Gaius’ chambers and went early to bed.

The next morning dawned bright and clear over good crops. The curse was over. Arthur’s chambers were in exactly the shape Merlin had anticipated and he did not want to wake for patrol but Merlin managed to roll the prat prince out of bed and into his clothes and she herded him down to the courtyard by the appointed time despite Arthur complaining of a dreadful headache. It was his own fault, after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just so there's no confusion: I will either be posting super early tomorrow or super late. I will be spending quite a few hours in the middle of the day with no access to internet. If I have time beforehand, I'll put chapter 13 up then. If I don't, it will have to wait until I have internet access tomorrow evening.


	13. Uther's Fate

Everyone was in high spirits following the curse being lifted until the next problem came to Camelot. The wave of magic woke Merlin, but she slept through most of the initial excitement. She woke and went to fetch Arthur’s breakfast only to discover that Gwen’s father had been apprehended the night before for working for a known sorcerer, some man named Tauren who was apparently known in Camelot. Merlin had not heard of him. But Tauren had escaped, leaving Gwen’s father standing there holding a large lump of gold that made him look very guilty indeed. He was in the dungeons, awaiting an official trial with Uther, Gwen was inconsolable and Morgana was fit to be tied. Merlin wondered how this had happened overnight and worried that Arthur might also be in a foul mood. He was. She arrived in his chambers to find he had thrown everything hither and yon. There was nothing in his wardrobe; all his clothes were strewn across the floor. He had clearly eaten since supper, as she had cleared away the dishes and there were at least three goblets on the floor. Of course, Arthur had been awake late into the night, so he was not pleased to be woken when she tripped over a bowl he had thrown on the floor and barely saved his breakfast as she crashed to the floor. It was certainly an auspicious morning. Arthur snatched the breakfast tray from her and promptly dismissed her.

Merlin went to go find Gwen, who was on her way down to the dungeons to speak with her father. Gwen had had no idea that he had taken any sort of work for a sorcerer, much less making weaponry like he was accused of. Gaius went down with them, to keep the guards from protesting that they were all plotting together. Gwen’s father told her that he had only agreed to do an experiment for the man, the nature of which he had been unaware of. He had not known it was a sorcerer, nor had he made any weapons. Apparently, the poor man had been hoping that the money offered would allow him to spend more on Gwen. Gwen was of course feeling terrible that this had happened when her father had only wanted to provide more for her. Gaius and Merlin, on unspoken agreement, herded Gwen up to their chambers and gave her a calming draught. She fell asleep on Merlin’s bed.

“Hopefully the rest will help,” Merlin sighed. “This is a disaster. What experiment can you do in a forge? Tom was a fool.”

“Perhaps Tauren was attempting alchemy,” Gaius suggested.

“But isn’t that pure nonsense? A thing is what it is and it will continue to be so. It isn’t going to suddenly miraculously turn into something else.”

“Perhaps with powerful magic and the purest of metals, it might be possible to succeed,” Gaius shrugged. “It would certainly explain the strangely shaped and unusually large lump of gold in Tom’s hand when he was apprehended.”

“That might have been the wave of magic that woke me,” Merlin agreed.

“Oh, did you wake last night?”

“Yes, for a moment. I knew it was magic but it wasn’t dark magic so I just went back to sleep. I assumed it was something I could worry about in the morning, if I even needed to worry.” As though on cue, Merlin felt the same rush of magic although it was less intense this time than before. She told Gaius so. He went to look up information on alchemy. Merlin went to sit with Gwen.

Eventually Morgana showed up in search of Gwen. But Gwen was still asleep and Merlin ushered Morgana out once she had ascertained that her friend was fine, only sleeping.

“Morgana, have you spoken to Uther? Tom assured Gwen he had no idea there would be any sorcery or sorcerers involved. He thought it was an honest job. He was not plotting against the King.”

“I know that,” Morgana nodded. “Tom’s a good man, if sometimes a little hasty in trusting strangers. I tried to speak to Uther, but he hears that sorcery was involved and sees only enemies. Arthur is out right now, looking for poor innocent stall-owners and inn keepers who may have inadvertently helped Tauren as well.”

“But surely there must be some hope,” Merlin wanted to hear that there was. But it seemed that if it came, it would not come from Morgana.

“There is no hope at all. Uther has already decided him guilty.” Morgana strode out on that note. There was little point in continuing the conversation anyway. Merlin felt for Gwen. Her mother was dead, for a few years now, lost to pneumonia during an unusually cold winter. Her father was the only family she had. At least, Merlin had never heard her mention any siblings that had gone off to seek their fortune.

Merlin felt sick as the innocent innkeepers and stall owners were executed, just as Morgana had said they would be. She tried to say something to Arthur, but he turned her away, warning her not to question the King’s judgment. There was no way that Tom would be freed. She was starting to think that even though she had not used magic to cure the townspeople of the Afanc plague that it was a miracle she had not been executed for sorcery anyway.

That night, Tom tried to escape. Morgana had stolen the key off Arthur’s ring and taken it to him. He did not succeed and Uther said that trying to run only further proved his guilt. One of the guards ran Tom through where they cornered him. Gwen was completely heartbroken and did not understand. She thought that he could have proved his innocence at the trial. Merlin had to agree that he should have at least tried and then escaped when Uther declared him guilty from the main floors rather than run the risk of getting trapped on the stairs like he had. Gwen had the whole day off, as Morgana had railed at Uther in her rage and gotten herself locked in the dungeons, and Merlin had been dismissed until nearly suppertime to comfort her.

Just after dinnertime, and Merlin had barely cajoled Gwen into eating a thing, Arthur showed up, looking more than a little awkward. “Guinevere, I...want you to know that your job is safe. And that your home is yours for life. I guarantee you that. I know that under the circumstances it's not much but, um, anything you want, anything you need, all you have to do is ask.” He almost turned to go but then squared his shoulders. “I’m so sorry.” Arthur nearly fled the room.

“Thank you,” Gwen murmured in confusion at his retreating back.

“I suppose that was the best way he could think of to apologize,” Merlin told her with a shrug. “I know he felt horrible that he was the one leading the guards when your father was apprehended.”

Despite Merlin’s protests, Gwen went home when Merlin went to go take Arthur his supper and straighten up his chambers from the tantrum disaster he had made. Merlin managed to get everything cleared away, though neither one of them was really sure what was clean and what was dirty out of the clothes he had strewn across the rushes, so she had nearly all of his clothing in the laundry basket to be done in the morning.

“How is Gwen?” Arthur asked as Merlin turned to leave, all her chores finished.

“Gwen is as well as can be expected. She doesn’t understand why he tried to escape before his trial. She’s heartbroken. But I think she will be alright given some time.”

“That’s good. Is she staying with you or Morgana?”

“She was with me all day but insisted on going home when I came to bring your dinner. I hope that it is comforting to her to be in her home and does not only remind her that her father is dead.”

“I hope so as well,” Arthur agreed. “She is a dear friend to you and Morgana both.” Merlin nodded, shuffling impatiently. She wanted to leave and hopefully Gaius would agree to go check on Gwen with her. “Go ahead,” Arthur told her. Merlin smiled her thanks as she hurried out.

Of course, Gaius did not agree to go with her and did agree that it would be inappropriate now that she was an unwed maiden living alone for Merlin to visit without a chaperone. Fortunately for curiosity’s sake, he did have an explanation for the stone Tom had mentioned to Gwen. There was a stone called the Mage’s Stone, it looked like an amber that glowed, with runes carved into it and set in a dragon’s claws. It had much power and had been lost to the passage of time years ago. But if Tauren had found it, it could easily explain how he had managed alchemy. It would also explain the wave of power she had felt.

The next morning, Arthur got Morgana out of the dungeons, swearing to Uther that Morgana would not challenge him again, that surely an overnight stay would have permanently curbed her temper. Since Morgana was available to comfort Gwen, Merlin was on laundry duty and did not hear about Tauren threatening Gwen over this stone until much later. But that night, early the next morning really, when Morgana picked it up again, she felt that same wave of power and woke up. This time she went to investigate. She followed the thread of power back to the source to see Morgana sneaking out of the castle. Merlin followed her into the woods and hid behind a tree as Morgana spoke to Tauren and his men. At first Merlin thought it was very kind of her to spare Gwen the anxiety of having to face Tauren and his men so soon after her father had been killed for helping him, but she soon realized that Morgana’s rage had not been assuaged, only inflamed. Tauren put a blade to Morgana’s stomach, not trusting her even with the stone in hand and no knights in sight.

“If you kill me, you'll regret it,” Morgana said flatly.

“Why is that?”

“Because I want Uther dead, too,” she insisted. Merlin leaned heavily on the tree she was hiding behind. Arthur was not yet ready to be King. He threw tantrums when he was upset and drank too much.

“You? An enemy of the King? And I'm to believe that?” Merlin could understand Tauren’s doubt.

“Why else would I be here?” Morgana knew her own anger and could not.

“I can only guess at your motives, My Lady. You could be a spy, for all I know,” he told her.

“And this...” Morgana flipped back the sleeves of her cloak, revealing her bruised wrists. Merlin winced. Those had to hurt. “Is it usual for Uther to chain his friends to a dungeon wall?” she demanded. Tauren shook his head, starting to believe her. “The stone. You took it to the forge. Why?”

“With it a man can alter the very essence of things. He can turn a lump of lead into gold,” Tauren bragged. The implication of the power the stone held was lost on Morgana, who knew so little of magic from growing up in Camelot.

“Gold? A good man died in your quest for riches, Tauren. His daughter is now an orphan.”

“I'm sorry for that. Truly. But we did not want the gold to line our pockets. The gold was but a means, a means to rid this kingdom of Uther Pendragon once and for all.”

“What are you saying?” Morgana demanded.

“Bribery is rife at Camelot,” Tauren explained easily. Merlin would believe it. “I will use the corruption at the heart of his kingdom, and such abundance of gold will buy me into the King's chambers, even to the King himself.”

“The guards may be fools, Tauren, but the King is not.” That was true. He was paranoid, not the kind of fool that let just anyone into his court.

“Do you have a better plan?” Tauren countered.

“To get to Uther, you need someone close to him,” Morgana replied.

“And you know of such a person?”

“I do,” Morgana smiled at Tauren. “Me. He thinks I have repented my anger against his tyranny. I can get him out of the castle with minimal guards and never raise any suspicions.” Merlin’s stomach dropped to her feet alongside her heart. Morgana had taken leave of her senses. There was no way for this to end well. Morgana succeeded, a King’s blood was on her hands, she would turn on Tauren and Arthur would ascend the throne too young to do anything but honor his father’s laws.

Morgana went back to the castle and Merlin followed her with deep despair and much on her mind. She was almost glad that Arthur made her muck out the stables and walk his dogs, giving her a long list of chores for being late with his breakfast. The work kept her too busy to worry overmuch about Morgana plotting to kill Uther with a sorcerer to catch the blame for her. If a sorcerer was blamed for his father’s death, Arthur would never put more lenient laws into place. He would believe that his father was right and all magic was evil and corrupting and everyone tainted with it must die. As she worked, though, she could not keep from overhearing that Morgana had gone and apologized to Uther herself and ended up having an outburst about her own father’s death.

Merlin had an awkward conversation with Gaius about whether Uther was good for the kingdom or not. He certainly agreed with her that Arthur lacked the experience necessary to be a good King. Of course, Merlin knew that Gaius was also very much Uther’s man. Gaius focused on the peace and prosperity that Uther had brought to the kingdom, the alliances he had forged with other kingdoms, both near and far.

Merlin went down to the dragon to get his opinion. The dragon, of course, thought that the correct course would be to allow Morgana’s plot to play itself out. Uther would die and then the dragon believed that the persecution of those with magic would be at an end, which of course was what anyone born with magic would want for the kingdom. Merlin just was not certain that she had the dragon’s faith that Arthur would not continue to uphold his father’s ban on magic. Arthur would not execute anyone seen for a moment in a sorcerer’s presence, perhaps, and he would be careful to make certain that all those killed had used magic, but Merlin had no faith that those who had used magic would be any safer.

She spent the next day walking around in a daze, having barely slept for going back and forth on the dilemma. Arthur was graciously lenient with her ill attention, clearly having noticed that she had not slept well. Though he probably thought she had been worrying about or comforting Gwen, rather than deciding, again, whether to let the King of Camelot live or die. This was the second time she had been forced to make this decision and she was too young to have someone’s life in her hands like this.

It was only talking to Gwen that helped her cement her decision. Morgana was in the courtyard and Merlin was staring at her out the window, wondering how she could be so firm in her decision to kill her guardian.

“Merlin?” Gwen’s sweet voice broke her reverie. Merlin turned to smile at her friend.

“Gwen. How are you doing?”

“I was about to ask you the same question,” Gwen told her teasingly.

“I'm fine. Fine,” she assured her. Gwen looked wonderingly out the window and caught sight of Morgana.

“Morgana's been amazing these last few days.”

“I think you've been amazing. After all that's happened, getting your life back together...”

“It's better than sitting in an empty house, waiting for my father to walk through the door. The thing I find hardest to bear is that people will always think he was guilty because he tried to escape.” Gwen sighed.

“I know he was innocent,” Merlin offered.

“I think he tried to escape because he knew that whatever he said or did he'd be killed. The King had already made up his mind. That's the kind of man he is.” Gwen looked resigned to the fact of the matter.

Instead of her usual noncommittal response, Merlin decided to ask for Gwen’s counsel on her current dilemma. “I wouldn't blame you if you wanted him dead,” she murmured, to see Gwen’s reaction.

“If he died I'd feel nothing. He means nothing to me.”

“But if you had...you know...the choice, what would you do? If you had the power of life and death over Uther, would you kill him? For what he did?”

“No!” Gwen was horrified.

“No? Even if you didn’t have to raise a hand yourself? You just had to make the decision and it was done?”

Gwen gave her a very queer look, understandably. “But what would that solve? That would make me a murderer. That would make me as bad as him.”

“You're right. Of course you're right,” Merlin reassured her. If Gwen, who was the only person living most wronged by Uther’s most recent bout of paranoid tyranny would not let him die to avenge her father than it was certainly not Merlin’s place to do it in her stead. She would figure out what Morgana’s plot was and stop her from succeeding.

“Merlin, you ask the strangest things sometimes,” she said.

“I know,” Merlin laughed. “But I also have the strangest thoughts and the only way to get rid of them is to ask someone what they think.”

“Oh,” Gwen smiled. “I can understand that. I’ll have a strange thought left over from a dream that I can’t leave alone sometimes. Once I dreamed that there was a large pink bird that flew in my window and I couldn’t stop thinking of it for days afterward.”

“Well, that would be a strange image, and difficult to get out of your head,” Merlin agreed. Would that her dilemmas were so innocent. “I should probably get back to my chores. Arthur’s been in a strange mood all week and I shouldn’t provoke him.”

“Of course,” Gwen pressed her hand to Merlin’s arm. “Thank you for being such a dear friend, Merlin.”

“You’re welcome,” Merlin replied, feeling a bit strange about it. She wandered off, back to the list of chores Arthur had given her.

That night she followed Morgana out of the castle again, where she told Tauren the plan. Uther and Morgana, with only a small escort of guards, would ride out to where Morgana’s father had been buried and Tauren’s men would be waiting in ambush. The guards would be down before Uther was aware and he would be a sitting duck. Admittedly, it was a very well-thought plot. Merlin had to give Morgana credit where it was due. That did not mean that it was infallible, though. Merlin would sneak out with Morgana and Uther and protect the guards from Tauren’s men if she could. Then Tauren would likely fall or turn tail and run. Someone older and better equipped to handle such things could decide his punishment.

Merlin did exactly as planned. She had Adara, one of the kitchen maids who she sometimes chatted with, take Arthur his breakfast. None of her other chores were urgent, so they could wait until she returned. She snuck out after Morgana and Uther, keeping back and to the trees. No one noticed her. Once they got to the gravesite, Morgana and Uther dismounted and left the guards at the foot of the hill. Tauren’s men all went to take care of the guards while Tauren himself went up to kill Uther. Merlin knocked out all of Tauren’s men, but the guards were chatting, not expecting danger and none of them were quick enough when Tauren pounced on Uther. With all the witnesses, Merlin was frozen in indecision. The only way for her to interfere would be to use magic, which would get her a death sentence of her own and then she would have to abandon Arthur. Thankfully, Morgana had apparently changed her mind. She stabbed Tauren in the back with the dagger Uther had dropped in his scuffle with the sorcerer. Merlin breathed easier as she rushed back to the castle before anyone could implicate her in knocking out Tauren’s men with magic.

Arthur fussed at her about not delivering his breakfast but he did not even bat an eye strangely at her when Morgana and Uther returned, with Tauren and his men, and the guards told Uther in public audience that they had no idea who or what had knocked them unconscious. Thank goodness for small favors. Gaius, of course, easily put together what had happened and Merlin expected a lecture on the fact she had even thought about letting Uther die while being praised for having saved his life once she got back to Gaius’ chambers that night. She was not wrong. Gaius hugged her and gushed about how she had been quite right and so brave to save Uther’s life, and then he chided her for clearly having to ask his advice on whether or not to save someone’s life. Merlin decided not to mention that she had asked the dragon and Gwen as well before actually making her decision.


	14. The Power of Life and Death

Arthur took Merlin out hunting the next day with a small contingent of knights, wanting to be able to avoid Tauren’s trial and the distress at the thought of his father dying it was sure to cause. Merlin was still sort of wondering what Uther had said to Morgana to change her mind but had not yet found opportunity or wording to ask her. Also, Tauren was certain to be summarily executed and Arthur did not attend sorcerer’s executions. Of course, Merlin’s luck since she arrived in Camelot had been absolutely dreadful and Arthur’s general luck seemed to tend about the same. The hunting trip quickly went not at all to plan. They cornered a beast in the forest without too much trouble, but the creature ended up vindicating Merlin’s concerns.

“Merlin, spear,” Arthur ordered. Merlin fumbled with all the things in her hands and accidentally dropped it on him. Arthur made an irritated sound as he snatched it off the ground. “Do you have any natural gifts Merlin?” he demanded.

“No. Well, let me think. I'm not naturally rude or insensitive,” Merlin grumbled.

“Just naturally irritating,” Arthur snapped back. Merlin was not the one in a prat mood and she had half a mind to tell him so. They moved forward and Merlin could hear the beast growling. There was no way that whatever was making that sound was food. Could they not leave it alone? Arthur caught her eye and his expression softened. “It's probably more scared of you than you are of it,” he murmured. Merlin nodded silently, though she did not believe him. Arthur made incomprehensible hand gestures at the knights. She knew that they had a whole system worked out, and the knights always followed his directions, but the system was beyond her ken.

After another rustle in the undergrowth, the beast jumped out at them. It was a very large, larger than a horse, snake/lizard creature. Arthur dropped his spear in shock. Everyone took off running. Clearly Merlin was brighter than the knights, who had thought that this creature was more scared of them than they were of it. As they ran, Merlin’s boot caught on a tree root and she crashed to the ground. Arthur and one of the other knights, Sir Bedivere, dragged her back to her feet without really slowing down themselves. They kept running until they no longer heard anything chasing them. The knights all grouped up around Arthur, waiting for instruction.

“Have we lost it?” Merlin asked, craning her head to look back in the direction they had come.

“Who's missing?” Arthur asked. Everyone was looking around and counting. Wait.

“Where's Sir Bedivere?” she asked. As though she had jinxed him, a man’s scream could be heard through the trees. They all knew that the creature must have gotten him. It was a quiet hunting party that returned back to Camelot with the sad news.

With Arthur’s blessing, Merlin went straight up to Gaius’ chambers to find out what the strange creature was while the knights went to break the news to Uther. No one had recognized the beast, not even Merlin. Gaius himself was not certain of what it was and had posed several possibilities to her by the time Arthur arrived, waiting for an explanation to give to his father, and then several more after that before they discovered what it was.

“Is this it?” Gaius asked. Merlin dutifully looked at the picture, not expecting anything out of it. But finally he had found the correct one.

“Yes, that’s it,” Merlin agreed excitedly. Arthur rushed over to look for himself. He nodded.

“What is it?” he demanded.

“It’s a Questing Beast,” Gaius said. “And if this is it, I had better explain this to your father myself.” Arthur gave him a strange look but agreed. They were soon all three in the council chambers.

“So, Gaius, what is it?”

“The creature Arthur and Merlin described has all the characteristics of the Questing Beast.”

“Surely that's a myth,” Sir Cador protested.

“According to the old books, the appearance of the Questing Beast is supposed to foreshadow a time of great upheaval,” Gaius insisted calmly.

“Gaius, it's an old wives' tale,” Uther retorted.

“Look, whatever it is, it's spreading panic. It killed Bedivere and the people fear it will enter the city.”

“Then we must kill it,” Uther decreed. “Arthur, gather the guard together. You ride at dawn.” Arthur nodded in acknowledgment.

“I beg you, Sire, do not dismiss this,” Gaius begged. “The beast is an omen. I've seen it come before, the night your wife Ygraine passed away.”

“I've told you not to speak of that night again. I have conquered the Old Religion. It's warnings mean nothing to me now. Arthur will destroy the beast and we will no longer suffer at its hand.”

“But…” Gaius protested.

“No, Gaius.”

“Is the beast venomous?” Merlin asked. She had seen that it was from her brief glance at the page it had been on. Gaius smiled at her in gratitude.

“It is very venomous. One bite is always fatal,” he replied. “Your men must be very careful to stay out of range, Arthur.”

“Of course, I’ll warn them,” Arthur agreed. “We’ll all take spears.” Arthur strode off to do as his father had bid him. Gaius and Uther shared a long look with one another and whatever silent argument they were having, Gaius lost. Merlin followed him out of the room.

“What’s the problem?”

“It’s a creature of magic,” Gaius told her. “It will be very difficult to kill. And I was not exaggerating. At the heart of the Old Religion is the power of Life and Death. The Questing Beast’s bite is always fatal.”

“Well, they’re taking spears,” Merlin reassured him. “No one will get in range of its fangs.”

“I fear that spears may not be enough to kill it,” Gaius told her. Merlin sighed heavily. Down to the dragon it was.

“I better go see about my chores,” Merlin said. Gaius nodded and waved her off. Merlin did not go to see about her chores. She went down to the dragon.

“What is it, young warlock?” he asked.

“Uther has ordered Arthur to ride out and kill the Questing Beast,” she explained.

“Well, that is a tall order,” the dragon chuckled. “What is it you are concerned about?”

“What sort of weapon does he need? Gaius said that if the beast bites you that you die. Arthur has to live.”

“Yes, it is certainly not his destiny to die now,” the dragon agreed. “If you will not slay it with magic for him, then the sword I forged for Arthur will work nicely, but Arthur must be careful. A sword is a close range weapon.”

“Thank you,” Merlin told him, hurrying back up to Arthur. She found him looking rather annoyed at his messy chambers. “Sorry,” she murmured as she walked in.

“Oh, there you are,” Arthur brightened. Had he been looking for her?

“Yes, here I am,” Merlin agreed. “Gaius doesn’t think that a spear will kill the Questing Beast. The dragon says the sword he burnished will work but you will have to be extremely careful not to get bitten. It’s magic venom or something and there isn’t an antidote.”

“I’ll get a chambermaid to tidy up, then. You go get the sword from wherever you hid it.” Merlin agreed. She went and fetched the sword from the lake and was back a little after suppertime. Arthur complained about her taking too long and clearly she had stopped off to flirt with Morgana. Merlin had done no such thing. Arthur dismissed her for the evening. “I suppose you can have the day off tomorrow as well. There’s no need for you to accompany me on such a dangerous venture.”

“I’m going with you,” Merlin insisted. Arthur smiled at her.

“You’re an idiot,” he murmured. “Alright, you can come with me, but I want you to stay as much out of danger as possible. You must promise me.”

“I promise that I won’t get anywhere near the creature unless I have to rescue you because you got yourself knocked unconscious,” Merlin told him. Arthur chuckled at her.

“Good enough. Go get some rest. We’re leaving at dawn.”

“Yes, sire,” Merlin inclined her head before letting herself out. Gaius, of course, insisted on feeding her and her eating seconds before he would let her go to bed, but Merlin was glad of the sustenance. She had forgotten to grab dinner on the way to the lake to get the sword, after all.

Morning came early for everyone. It was still chilly, dew hanging in the air despite it being almost summertime when they were all listening to Arthur before they set out.  
“You've seen the foe we face. It's a creature of nightmare, but you are the best knights in the realm. We can, and we will, kill it before it harms another citizen of our kingdom.” Arthur drew out his dragon fire sword. “For the love of Camelot!”

The knights drew their swords and echoed back, “For the love of Camelot!” Apparently the screaming made them feel better about their chances. Merlin had a few less than flattering thoughts about these superstitions but she kept them to herself. Unfortunately, there was to be another ill omen before they left.

Morgana ran down the palace steps in her nightgown, clearly hysterical, “Arthur!” Arthur, understandably, was baffled by her behavior. Merlin felt cold dread sink into her veins. Had Morgana had a vision?

“Morgana, what are you doing?” he demanded.

“You cannot face this!” she cried, trying to grab him, make him stay. Arthur struggled with her.

“Morgana, go back to bed,” he ordered. “There is nothing to be afraid of.”

“Please, Arthur. I have seen terrible things! You cannot go!” Morgana had definitely Seen something. Merlin had this feeling that Arthur was not going to be careful enough.

“She probably had a bad dream, Arthur. She should go see Gaius.” Merlin slid down off her horse and bundled Morgana into her arms.

“No! I will not let you go!” she was sobbing now.

“Please, Merlin, get her inside,” Arthur begged.

“No!” Morgana cried again. Arthur motioned for the guards while Merlin slowly forced her back towards the palace steps. 

“I will make sure he's safe, My Lady. I promise,” she lied. She would find a way to keep him alive, at any rate.

“No!” Morgana screamed. Merlin flinched, expecting an outburst of magic. None came. Perhaps it was only Sight that Morgana had. It was unusual, to be sure, but not unheard-of. The guards took Morgana from Merlin and agreed to take her up to Gaius, even as she kept screaming protests and trying to get out of their hold. Merlin ran back down to her horse and mounted again.

“Let’s go.” Arthur led the way out of the citadel. Merlin stayed at his side while the knights fell in behind him.

“Poor Morgana,” Merlin commented.

“She has such dreadful nightmares,” Arthur agreed, loud enough for the knights to hear. “They cause her such distress.”

“Of course, this isn’t the first time she’s run to find you at dawn, claiming you were going to your death,” Merlin said with a smile. Arthur nodded.

“That’s true,” he agreed. “I’m not concerned.” The conversation was purely for the knights who had been whispering nervously amongst themselves from the moment Morgana came running into the courtyard. They finally seemed to settle. The conversation turned to other such hunts, rather than Morgana’s fears. They mentioned enough of these sorts of things that Merlin wondered if it was not her luck in Camelot was so bad, but that Camelot itself was plagued with the worst luck possible.

Eventually they tracked the beast back to the caves it seemed to be living in. Merlin could easily see how this was going to cause them problems. The caves were too close quarters to offer much room to maneuver. Additionally, the beast was much more familiar with the caves than they were and could back them into a corner with no way out. The knights split up, heading in the different directions through the caves. Merlin stuck close to Arthur’s side.

Of course the beast found them, because that was just how things went. It pounced from behind them and Arthur pushed Merlin out of the way. She screamed as Arthur stabbed the creature, killing it, but not dodging the beast’s bite. Arthur went down hard. Merlin threw the creature away from him with a wave of magic and scrambled down to Arthur’s side.

“It didn’t get you, not through the chainmail,” Merlin muttered to herself. But Arthur was bleeding. “Arthur’s down!” Merlin screamed. The knights quickly poured out of the woodwork. Leon pulled Merlin back, away from Arthur, as the other knights picked him up.

“He’s still breathing, Merlin,” Leon assured her, herding her forward around the beast. Geraint handed her Arthur’s sword.

“Here, carry this,” he told her. She knew it was an attempt to give her a task to keep her distracted but it was not terribly helpful. She should have listened to Morgana and kept Arthur very far back from the beast. They rode hard back for the citadel and Gaius. Merlin was the only one who knew it would not help, but she could not say anything. Gaius had had a lot of power once but not anymore. Any means of curing Arthur would have to come from something very powerful indeed. Would that mage stone help? Transform the venom into something else? Probably not. She would need a High Priestess to fix this. Merlin didn’t know any of the priestesses and none of them were in Camelot.

The knights carried Arthur up to Gaius’ chambers. Leon sent Galahad to break the bad news to Uther. Gaius went white as a sheet when he saw Arthur. The knights all clustered worriedly at Arthur’s side.

“Was he bitten?” Gaius asked.

“Yes,” Merlin murmured. “There has to be something,” she begged.

“I know of nothing,” Gaius told her.

“We can’t let him die,” Geraint protested.

“There is no known antidote to the poison of the Questing Beast,” Gaius explained. “He will either live or die on his own strength.”

“At least you could clean the wound,” Leon suggested. Merlin nodded. She could do that. She started over to get a clean cloth and the bucket of water when Uther burst in. He paled at the sight of his son unconscious on Gaius’ table.

“Why aren’t you doing anything?” he demanded.

“I am trying to determine what will help him most,” Gaius countered.

“He will not die,” Merlin said. “I am certain of it.” Uther met her eyes and nodded.

“I will bear him back to his chambers,” Uther decided. He managed to pick Arthur up off the table. The knights did not argue with the King, only followed him out of the room, hovering close to catch him if he slipped. Merlin trailed after them. Uther made it as far as the courtyard before he fell to his knees, sobbing. The knights took Arthur from him and carried him on up to his chambers. Merlin went to Uther and helped him up.

“Come on, Sire,” she murmured. Uther leaned heavily on her, but they made it inside and up to Arthur’s chambers. Geraint slid a chair over beside Arthur’s bed and Uther half-fell into it. Merlin reached out to touch Arthur and his hand was already cooler than usual. She turned and fled the room. How could he be dying?

She found herself looking up at the dragon with no memory of arriving there. “I’ve failed him. The Questing Beast bit him. He’s dying.”

“There, there, lytling,” the dragon murmured. “He still breathes, does he not? You have time.”

“But what do I do? Gaius says there is no cure.”

“A life for a life, young warlock. Go to the Isle of the Blessed and get a cure from the priestess there.”

“Then I suppose this is goodbye,” Merlin whispered.

“Perhaps not,” the dragon replied. “Destiny has a funny way of working itself out despite our interference.” Merlin took a deep breath and turned and left. She took a horse from Faolan, ignoring all his attempts at conversation. She rode hard towards the North, barely stopping until she arrived, though she rode for the rest of the day and all through the night. It was midmorning when she reached the Isle. There was a small boat that she used to cross the lake to the Temple. At first it seemed as though there was not a priestess at all.

“Hello?” Merlin called out.

“Hello, Merlin,” a familiar woman’s voice greeted her. Merlin turned to see Cara, the girl who had poisoned her by making it look like Bayard was poisoning Arthur, Nimueh, the woman who had let Ygraine die and started the Great Purge by accident.

“You,” she growled.

“Do you know who I am?” she countered. 

“Nimueh. You can't be who the dragon meant.”

“And why is that?”

“You tried to kill me. You’re the reason magic is banned in Camelot.”

“Before I understood your importance.” Nimueh ignored the other charge. “Arthur was never destined to die at my hand, and now it seems I will be his salvation.”

“So you know what I've come to ask?”

“Yes.”

“Will you do it?”

“I do not have the power to mirror life itself and yet give nothing in return.”

“I know that a price will be asked,” Merlin assured her.

“To save a life, there must be a death. The balance of the world must be restored.” 

“I willingly give my life for Arthur's,” Merlin offered.  
“How brave you are, Merlin. If only it were that simple.”

“What do you mean?” Had the woman no control over her spells? It truly was that simple.

“Once you enter into this bargain, it cannot be undone.”

“Whatever I have to do, I will do,” Merlin promised.

Nimueh pulled an ornate goblet from the air. “The Cup of Life, blessed by centuries of powerful sorcerers so that it contains the very secret of life itself. If Arthur drinks water from the Cup, he will live.” Merlin took the Cup from her and Nimueh opened up the skies with a word. Was she a sorceress, and not a witch? The rain stopped after a moment, the Cup full of blessed water. Nimueh took the Cup back and poured the water into a small, decorative water flask. She handed it to Merlin who took it happily. Arthur would live. “The bargain is struck. I hope it pleases you.”

Merlin rode back to Camelot, still barely stopping to rest. She arrived a little after dawn. Faolan thankfully was already in the stables and did not question her as she rushed up to Arthur’s bedside, almost too distracted to notice the townspeople holding vigil under his window in the courtyard. Thankfully, Gaius was the only one in Arthur’s chambers when she arrived.

“Merlin!” he gasped. “What did you get?”

“Water, from the Cup of Life,” she told him. “Arthur has to drink it.” Gaius looked fearfully at her.

“Whose life did you bargain?” he asked worriedly.

“We don’t have time for that,” she snapped, “Now help me!” Gaius reluctantly agreed and helped her pour the water down Arthur’s throat. Uther walked in as they were still pouring and started violently.

“What is that? What are you giving him?” They both froze.

“It is a tincture of lobelia,” Gaius lied smoothly. “It is an ancient cure for venomous bites. I had sent Merlin to go gather some and he finally returned last night.”

“Ah,” Uther nodded, beginning to look hopeful. “Is it a cure?”

“It is our only hope, but only time will tell,” Gaius replied.

“Arthur’s strong. He’ll live,” Merlin said confidently.

“I want to believe that, too,” Uther mumbled, walking over to Arthur’s bedside. As much as Merlin wanted to throw herself on the bed beside Arthur, lay there until she died, it would be cruel to Arthur for him to wake to her dead body beside him. She let Gaius lead her out.

“Whose life, Merlin?” he whispered insistently, once the door was closed behind them.

“The only life I have,” Merlin hissed back. “I could not give what is not mine to give.”

“Oh, Merlin,” Gaius wrapped her up in a hug. “You are too young.”

“I am happy to give my life for Arthur.” Gaius sniffed wetly, trying to hold back tears.

“And we will all miss you terribly,” he mumbled.

Once Merlin was safely in Gaius’ chambers, where no one would notice if she suddenly fell down dead when Arthur awoke, Gaius went back to Arthur’s chambers to keep watch. She still felt fine when Gaius returned, assuring her that Arthur was awake and well. Merlin desperately wanted to go see for herself, but it was too dangerous. She might collapse in the corridor.

Merlin sat up long after Gaius put her to bed, waiting to die. At some point she fell asleep. The morning sun woke her the next day and she sat up, looking around at familiar surroundings with some confusion. But, Merlin had come back from the brink of death more than once. And there were some Druids who said she was what Kearia was, Kearia who had lived hundreds of years already and looked no older than Morgana. Perhaps she had given Arthur one less lifetime for her to outlive her loved ones. Perhaps Nimueh had meant it when she called Merlin important. Merlin prayed that she was not alive because Nimueh had taken someone else in her place. After taking a moment to compose herself, Merlin walked out of her room to find Gaius kneeling over a wheezing figure covered in sores on the floor.

“What is it? What's happened?” she asked. Gaius looked over his shoulder and shook his head at her.

“Merlin, stay there!” he insisted.

“What's wrong?” she demanded, coming closer.

“No, don't!” Merlin did not heed the warning, and got close enough to see the poor soul’s face. She knew that face better than any other.

“Mother!”

“Merlin,” her mother murmured.

“No. Tell me her life was not taken in my place,” Merlin whispered. “This is not what I agreed to.”

“I fear that may be exactly what happened,” Gaius admitted. “This is no ordinary illness and it is a miracle your mother made it all the way here.”

“She had to have been already planning to visit and on her way,” Merlin corrected. “The journey is longer than how much time has passed since we gave Arthur the water, especially with Mother in this condition.”

“Merlin, answer me honestly. Who did you meet at the Isle of the Blessed?”

“It was Nimueh,” Merlin admitted. “But I knew that it should be that simple. I never thought that Uther had had a mere sorceress for a Court Sorcerer when his own wife was such a powerful witch.”

“Oh, Merlin,” Gaius sighed. “I truly wish there was something I could do.”

“I have to go back to Nimueh. Make her take me for my mother,” Merlin said, anxiously thinking of the long journey ahead.

“Merlin, that would be cruel to your mother,” Gaius chided. “She would rather give her life for your safety than bury her own child.”

“But I can’t let her die,” Merlin cried. “She’s my mother. I can’t lose her.”

“Merlin?” Adara was hovering nervously at the door. “I’m so sorry to interrupt, truly I am, but the Prince wants to see you. He’s insisting.”

“It’s not your fault,” Merlin smiled wanly at her. “I suppose I’ll have to ask for time off at some point, anyway.” Adara smiled awkwardly back at her and nodded, hurrying back to the kitchens. She must have been the one they sent up with Arthur’s breakfast, Merlin guessed as she went off to Arthur’s chambers. She knew Gaius would do his best to make her mother as comfortable as possible.

“There you are!” Arthur beamed at her as she came in. “Where were you yesterday?”

“I was in Gaius’ chambers, helping him while he stood vigil over you,” Merlin replied. That was true, at least.

“I think that should have been the other way around,” Arthur chuckled. Merlin watched him laugh and it nearly brought tears to her eyes that he was well enough to laugh. “Now, Merlin, since I know how much like a girl you are and Leon told me that you were boo-hooing all over me when they arrived to help, I will not assume you remembered this on your own. Where is my sword?” Merlin drew a complete blank. Her expression had to be humorous. Arthur looked less than amused, though. “If you left it in that cave, so help me…”

“No!” Merlin cut him off, “No, Geraint gave it to me to carry back. You’re supposed to give people an easy task when they’re upset like that. Keeps them from getting all worked up.”

“Alright, so where did you leave the sword in the castle?”

“Um, I know I didn’t have it after the knights brought you in, to Gaius’ chambers. So probably there? Unless one of the knights took it down to the armory.”

“Oh, for the love of…” Arthur groaned. “Go hunt it down and put it back where you’ve been keeping it. And no flirting with Morgana this time.”

“Yes, sire,” Merlin agreed. “I’m so glad you’re well.” She turned and left. Thankfully the sword was back in Gaius’ chambers, since that was the first place she went to look. She briefly explained to Gaius that she had to put it back in its hiding spot, and Gaius expressed his shock that Uther’s son would knowingly use a sword burnished in dragon’s fire. But they both knew that she would go back to the Isle of the Blessed directly after and demand that Nimueh take the payment she had offered the first time and spare her mother. It was a tearful goodbye. Her mother was asleep, but Merlin bid her goodbye as well, quietly apologizing for causing her distress. She almost went to Arthur’s chambers, but she could not bear to say goodbye to him. Hopefully he would forgive her.

Then Merlin went down and got a horse, grateful for once that Faolan was not there chattering in her ear, and headed first for the Lake of Avalon. She threw the sword back in and quietly prayed that the Goddess would ease her way. Merlin got back on her horse and turned towards the Isle of the Blessed. She took time to rest that night for a few hours and ended up back on the Isle around midmorning, shocked to discover that Gaius had ridden out to the Isle as well.

Gaius’ body was limp on the ground at Nimueh’s feet. Clearly he had thought to spare her mother the loss of a child by sacrificing his own life to save her. That Nimueh had actually taken his life and her mother was probably recovering only made Merlin angry. She could control her spells, she had just refused to. Or she had taken her mother on purpose.

“How dare you?” Merlin asked. “When I offer my life for Arthur’s, you cannot strike that bargain, but Gaius may offer his life for my mother’s and that you will agree to?”

“It is not yet your time to die, Merlin,” Nimueh countered. “The Old Religion cares only that the balance is maintained, not who lives and dies.”

“Yes, and you were the one who did this,” Merlin said. She could feel her emotions welling up, far beyond what she had allowed them since childhood. Her magic stirred at the tempest of feeling. The weather began to react to her mood, clouds building in the clear blue sky.

“Come now,” Nimueh had the stupidity to smile at her, “We are too valuable to one another to be enemies.” The clouds opened up and rain poured down.

“You are nothing to me,” Merlin whispered. That smile had put her over the edge. A bolt of lightning came down out of the clouds and smote Nimueh. Merlin felt her agony as she died, but felt little remorse in its wake. She dropped to ground and pulled Gaius into her lap, hoping that she had managed to save him despite his best efforts. After a moment, Gaius stirred. His eyes blinked open.

“Merlin?” he asked wonderingly.

“I may have killed Nimueh,” she admitted. Gaius laughed in surprise.

“You've mastered the power of life and death itself. We'll make a great warlock of you yet.”

“Oh, so you believe in me now?” Merlin teased.

“Maybe if you can stop this blasted rain,” he countered. Merlin waved the storm away with her hand. She was no longer angry. They both rode back to Camelot together, deciding that they would claim to have been out gathering herbs together because Gaius’ stores had been grossly depleted. When they arrived back in Camelot, her mother was overjoyed to see them both safe and sound, Uther believed them about the herbs and Arthur did not question her about it, though he looked as though he thought it sounded a little strange.


End file.
